


In Aeternum

by KAMUEL



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Brotherhood anime - canon universe - canon divergence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Feelings?/Feelings!, M/M, Romantic Fluff, Sexual Content, Slash, Teen Romance, endearing awkwardness in all things romance and sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-18
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-07-15 20:02:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 34,435
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7236514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KAMUEL/pseuds/KAMUEL
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Noctis POV of the events depicted in the second episode of the Brotherhood anime, and beyond. ;)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! 
> 
> Wow, so now that E3 is over, it's time to get down to business with all the new information Director Tabata has given us! And finally! Finally we have the official ages of the protagonists! For everyone who doesn't know it yet:  
> Noctis is 20.  
> Prompto is 20.  
> Ignis is 22.  
> Gladio is 23. 
> 
> Gosh I feel so old now ;___;, haha! It doesn't really matter to me, because in my mind Noctis is 23, Prompto is 22, Ignis is 26 and Gladio is 27 ;).  
> And Noctis is Virgo! Ha, I knew it! In reallife he would be the perfect match for me, lol. No wonder I feel attracted towards him (not only because of his obvious gorgeous looks, lol). ;)))
> 
> Back to the matter at hand *clears throat*. This story follows the second episode of Brotherhood, only with an added romantic twist later on (well, my old readers know me and my preferences by now!). After watching the second Brotherhood episode, I now love Prompto even more than before! His quirky behaviour makes so much sense now. He's so endearing to watch as he gives his all to change himself for the better for Noctis' sake. This just screams for a nice Noctis POV, right? I just had to take the wheel to write more about those cannon events. And by the way, in my story, Luna is quite the meddling girl ;). I like cannon Luna more and more as well. I really liked her sneaky way, of telling Prompto to become Noctis' friend in pretending as if he already was Noctis' friend.  
> This was such a great episode!
> 
> Well then, have fun reading everyone! Please don't forget to drop a comment or two, let me know what you think! :)  
> Kamuel
> 
> P.S.: to all new readers, English is my third language, so I apologize for any spelling/grammatical errors that I made! I look for beta-readers for this story, please send me a note if you have time/are interested :)!

 

* * *

**Chapter One**

**...**

"Noct?"

"Hm...?" I answer absentmindedly, staring at nothing in particular as I allow myself for the umpteenth time to indulge in heartfelt reminiscences.

Prom chuckles, shifting closer to cuddle up to me. "You are lost in thoughts again, aren't you? And I can't help but notice that you are doing this a lot lately."

"Hn..." I confirm casually, my mind still far away.

Prom teases my chest with feather light caresses, inching further up to me, a playful tone in his voice when he murmurs inside my ear, "My King, should I get worried?"

His warm exhales of breath are tickling my skin and I turn my head towards him with a tender smile, hoping that my expression is able to convey how much I treasure and adore him. I continue to gaze into his gorgeous bright blue eyes as my arms pull him up to meet my lips in a gentle, soft kiss.

Prom is a loyal friend to me, a confidant, a protector, and heaven... he has that unique, uncanny ability to lift me up whenever I feel down.

He's my all.

"What's on your mind? Come on, tell me..."

I'm squirming under him, erupting in soft laughter as his cheeky hands search out my ticklish, weak spots. His bright smile when he sees my reaction is so damn infectious!

Even after all these years that we spent together, I'm still speechless and full of admiration at Prom's fierce dedication towards me. I definitely won't ever take his honest devotion for granted. What he and I share is very special and rare. And so I promised to myself to not only cherish him with my whole being, but to be open with my feelings in return to his own. But... talking about my feelings is always an odd ordeal for me. My emotions are oftentimes a complicated mess. There is this fear inside of me, that my brain cells would melt down to the top of my toes if I allow my thoughts to linger too much on them.

So I proceed to pull Prom into a loving embrace, distracting him from further torturing me with his wicked pokes on my sensitive sides, hoping that the hug can calm my rapid beating heart.

He nuzzles the side of my face tenderly, placing soft kisses on each one of my closed eyelids, which makes me smile fondly against his skin.

Only after a great deal of coaxing do I relent. "I have to tell you something." I admit to him finally. "I've been lost in my thoughts lately, especially tonight, probably staring like a complete idiot at the wall the entire time because I was asking myself again and again if I truly am worth all the trouble you've gone through for my sake in the past."

His wide eyes suddenly search mine out, sending me a scolding stare. "Not this again. Noct, how many times do I need to repeat to you that you're my entire world? You know there is nothing that I wouldn't do for you-"

Instantly my hand comes up to stop him from speaking any further, my forefinger touches his soft lips slightly, saying, "I know. I am aware."

Heaven... he's so damn sweet, my heart almost can't take it all in.

He tilts his head in confusion. "Then, what is this really about?"

Clearing my throat, I avoid his eyes bashfully as I say, "Prom, I know we have never spoken about this, but I think it's time for me to tell you something important that's been on my mind for the past few weeks. It involves our past, of how we have met."

Prom shifts in my arms to get into a comfortable position and I shyly glance at him right when a playful grin appears on his lips. "It's about time we talk about it."

I send him a fond smile in answer, stroking the side of his lovely face in tender motions before I let my hand rest against the warm skin. And then I begin my tale.

Memories of a far past reach the forefront of my mind. Of a time, when Prom and I were only thirteen years young, when he and I were nothing more than mere acquaintances...

* * *

_(10 years earlier)_

_..._

"Kyaaah! Look, it's Prince Noctis!"

"Prince Noctis!"

I can only stay there, rooted to the spot as my body freezes up, when several giggling girls manage to ambush right into what would be my only safe haven around this place.

"Finally, there you are!"

"Your Highness, we still have so many questions!"

My eyebrow twitches nervously. Can somebody kindly remind me of the reason I'm here again?

Oh, right. I'm hiding. At least I was, until they found me.

One would think that I would be safe here, hiding from those hysterical girls, in the boys lavatory no less. What joke is this? Honest to Eos, this school is full of lunatics. I wish this could be a proper nightmare, so that Carbuncle, my dear friend from my lucid dreams would come out to swipe this madness away with his fluffy tail once and for all.

I start to shuffle my feet on the ground, getting nervous for no reason when the girls come closer to where I stand. Can you imagine, they were following me all the way to the bathroom. How crazy is that? I'm sending all kinds of grateful prayers up to the Goddess Eos, for she obviously saved me from completely embarrassing myself in front of the entire female population of my school. Just imagine the terror if my dedicated fan-club members stumbled into the bathroom right when I still had small-Noctis outside my pants to take a pee. The horror! Girls these days have absolutely no reservations, nor any proper manners. It's utterly appalling.

"You didn't tell us the last time we met about your servants, nor about all the riches at your place. How many are there? We are sooo curious!"

"Gosh, don't start. My nose starts bleeding! His private rooms must look beautiful!"

"Right? They must be!"

"Yeah, just imagine all the luxury inside the entire palace... kyaaah! I want to seeeee!"

"Pssst, imagine all the luxury inside of his bedroom... ohmygosh!"

The girls start to giggle among each other, blushing, and I have to roll my eyes in exasperation.

Rest assured girls, none of you will ever get a glimpse of my bedroom anytime soon.

I can't stop a shudder from running up my spine. How in the world of Eos did they find their way down here? Did they spy on me? There are so many bathrooms inside this blasted school, how come there was no teacher around to stop them? I'm quite appalled that girls can enter this place so easily.

Maybe I should just wash my hands? Maybe they become bored with me and they will walk away on their own. Hopefully.

"Whuaaah, look, he washes his hands!"

"Kyaah! Our Prince is behaving so proper, so admirably and he's soooo, so cool! Quick, take a picture!"

Are they serious?!

Girls!

I try my best not to stare them down. Be polite, Noctis, be polite.

I'll never understand girls. They will forever stay a mystery to me.

"See? He's a proper, well-mannered Prince after all, not like all those other guys around here. They all behave like swines. Not washing their hands, spitting on the floor, picking their noses and smearing the snot all over their clothes, ugh, it's so gross to watch."

All girls agree mutually, nodding their heads in unison.

I imagine right now how good it would feel to hit my head against that flat surface of the mirror in front of me. Will it hurt as much as I hope to? Will I get back to reality? Because I'm sure by now that this is a nightmare.

"Prince Noctis is a hundred, no, a thousand levels above them," they continue, "nobody can come close to his commendable upbringing. His father is King Caelum of Lucis after all."

"Noctis is a dream come true."

They all giggle.

"Psssst, a wet dream come true."

More giggling.

Oh man. This gets worse and worse.

Never underestimate girls growing into their puberty, their minds are dirtier than their underwear.

I'm barely aware of leaning towards the mirror now. I think I could really use a good hit on my head right now.

I can hear each and every word they say about me. And I can't stop a shudder from making my intestines cringe awkwardly into knots. Only in passing do I manage to catch a slight glimpse, concealed by my fringe, of that damn closed door behind my shepherd of a fan-club. The gears in my head already, carefully, desperately planning my smart escape. I wonder how many steps I'm going to need to take, to have a good start ahead when I find myself in the middle of running away? Twenty? Fifty? Too bad I can't show off my warping abilities to anyone.

My fan-club continues to whisper conspiratorially to another, proceeding to worship whatever fake image they have of me in their naive and shallow minds. Of course, they would be curious about my 'cool' and 'rich' lifestyle. Who isn't these days? The tabloid papers are full of rotten things about my family. These people do not care about me as a person at all. No matter which school I go to, it's always the same drama around me. I still don't understand why my father insists that I go to a public school.

My past showed me enough times already that here I'll never meet any honest friends...

And just when I finish that last line of my disheartening thoughts, to my luck and to the girls own misfortune, another boy suddenly appears into the bathroom.

"W-what are you all doing? Girls have no business in here, g-get out or I'll report you to the teachers." He finishes his stuttering and reprimanding speech as he sends a glare at them to make himself much more threatening.

It seems to work and I'm hiding my snort behind my hand.

"Kyaaaaah! Let's run!"

The girls start screaming at being caught, their faces red as ripe tomatoes, and I allow myself to sigh out in relief when they finally get out of this place.

The boy who just rescued me stands now at the door, unmoving, looking down and fiddling with his camera. He gives off the vibe of being very shy and uncertain in my presence, as if not knowing if he should come in or go out of the bathroom.

I have to hide a fond smile. Wasn't his name Prompto? He always seems so nice.

Actually, it's not the first time we have stumbled upon each other. I still wait for him to speak to me again. All he has done until now is to sneak around me and to run away whenever he became aware of me watching him. This curious behavior did start a few days ago, after we've met for the first time at my previous hiding place, which was in the dark shadows behind the abandoned sports hall no one uses anymore since yesteryear.

I mean, Prompto made me understand that he wants us to become friends, right? Then why is he avoiding me everytime?

Maybe he waits for me to say something first? Of course, oh I'm so stupid! How did I not think about this possibility before? I'm so used to other people approaching me all the time.

I scratch the back of my head.

Well then. How do I start? What do I say to him?

For one, I'm really curious about those pictures he seems to take all the time. I want to take a look at them. I guess this is a good opening to get him to talk to me.

All right. You can do this Noctis!

So I take a few, careful steps forward, as if I'm about to approach a frightened deer. But just when I'm about to make my flowery introductory speech (which I have yet to compose in my head), the school bell rings and he turns around to walk away, muttering something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like 'not yet" before he goes around the corner and I lose sight of him.

I can only stand there in the silence of the bathroom, unblinking.

Drops of water can be heard echoing as they fall mercilessly into the dirty drain of the sink.

Uhm, yeah.

What just happened?

He left just like that.

Well, nobody can say that I didn't at least try. I should congratulate myself for being courageous enough to approach him, yes.

Maybe I get to talk to him next time we meet, hopefully?

I can't help but feel a little bit disappointed. I just don't like to let things unfinished.

Just... what is it about Prompto that makes me so curious to get to know him?

**...**

"Umbra!"

I'm finally home from a long day at school and I hurry into my bedroom, crouching down to lift Luna's cute puppy up into my arms, asking him, "What are you doing here? Where is Pryna? Is everything okay?"

Umbra's small, wiggling tail continues to hit my chest with vigor, seemingly overwhelmed with joy to see me again.

I chuckle softly as I take off Luna's letter, which is bound around his leg. The puppy catches me by surprise when he starts to lick all over my face and I fall backwards on the floor in laughter, holding him up so that he can't reach my face again. "Haha, wait Umbra! I need to read Luna's message first. We can play afterward, okay? I promise!"

Umbra woofs louder, his small paws trying to reach for me, whining and being obviously very eager to play with me, but for the time being I place him down next to my leg to stroke gently over his dark and soft fur before I unfold the letter.

"Good boy." I praise the puppy with a wide smile when he places his chin on my thigh, watching me with big eyes and waiting patiently. This is not the first time where I get the strange feeling that Luna's dogs can understand human language... but I'm sure this is only my wild imagination.

I turn my attention back to the letter in my hand. I'm eager and worried at the same time to know what has taken so long for Luna's reply to reach me. I hope everything is all right.

'Dear Noctis,

I hope Umbra reaches you in good health. I apologize about Pryna's long absence. On her way to Insomnia, she got caught up into a little accident and along the way she strayed from her path. But please do not worry. It seems it was the will of Eos that Pryna was found and looked after by a very kindhearted friend of mine. After a little research, Gentiana found out that he goes the same school as yours. His name is Prompto Argentum. As you know, my dear Noctis, because of my position and because of the current state of political affairs in Tenebrae, I am unable to express my heartfelt gratitude towards Prompto in person. That's why, as your friend, I'd like to request kindly your assistance. Please search out Prompto and make sure that he is doing well. Be a good friend, in the same way you are to me. Protect him. Noctis, do you think you can do this for me?'

I stop reading Luna's letter for a moment to stare absentmindedly at Umbra. My fingers fondle his fluffy ears as I get lost in my erratic thoughts.

Prompto saved Pryna and he looked after her? Why didn't I know of this before?

And Luna wishes for me to become his friend? To protect him?

Images of Prompto trying to talk to me all week suddenly come up in my head, images of him standing shyly at the bathroom door at school and muttering 'not yet' before he dashes away.

With renewed resolve I straighten myself up.

All right. Luna depends on me to make sure that Prompto is doing well. She has done so much for me, and she's always so kind to me. How could I ever refuse her request? Not that I would ever want to. Something about Prompto speaks out to me. I wished to be his friend even before Luna mentioned her request in her letter. This coincidence is kinda funny when I think about it.

"Nee, Umbra? What do you think? Isn't Prompto a nice fellow? He looked after your injured sister. Amazing, right?"

Umbra woofs at me as if in confirmation, licking the back of my hand when I caress the dark fur on his small head fondly.

So, Prompto loves photography, right? He carries his camera around every time I see him.

Now, let's see... where are Ignis' books about photography? He must have placed them somewhere in my bookshelf the last time he visited. I need to be prepared before I go and make a fool out of myself.

Hopefully I can meet Prompto tomorrow again.

I can't wait.

**...**

* * *

To be continued. :)


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noctis takes his duties seriously.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya,
> 
> aaand next chapter up :)! Nothing much to add to it, enjoy reading everyone!  
> Thank you all so much for your reviews and kudos, they taste like the sweetest chocolate ;)!  
> Kamuel
> 
> P.S.: Sius is the driver we saw in one of the older Versus XIII trailers, where he calls for Noctis (dressed in the suit) to wake up. I don't know if we will ever see Sius again in the game, so I took this opportunity to flesh out his character into this story :D.

 

* * *

  
** Chapter Two **

**... **

In the course of the next few days I set my tired eyes glued on a self-assigned duty of constant look-out for Prompto.

I actually didn't sleep much because I was in the process of memorizing all important and all insignificant parts of information about professional photography. Not that I had been actually able to discern between the important and the not so important bits of it.

Nighttime is the only time where I'm able to do whatever I want without anyone dictating or monitoring of how I spend my free-time. Umbra, thankfully, stayed a few nights by my side before departing, his unique puppy-breath and cute barks were helping me tremendously to stay awake whenever I was on the verge to fall asleep in my own embarrassing puddle of saliva. Which is a feat in itself, as my favorite activity in my free-time is sleeping. I didn't mention yet that I'm the King of Sleep, right? Is this something to be proud of? I'm not sure. The teachers at least are not amused.

So yeah, as one can see, if I'm serious about something, I usually go all the way to the finish line. Aware of my strength, that I can break through every single wall of confusion in case I'm not able to comprehend something on the get go. To be perfectly honest, I stand in awe of myself right now. By now I learned the content of Ignis' photo books backwards. I can even recite all sentences and syllables in my sleep perfectly, if one would be sane enough to wish for me to do that, that is.

I'm now able to decipher Photo Jargon to a t. I learned speaking 'Photographer', something of which I surprisingly didn't know until the night before that this was actually a language of its own. I can count pixels with my eyes shut and I'm able to take needle-sharp selfies in front of blurred mirrors. I'm now a full fledged, self-taught expert of all things DPI, EV, F-stop and ISO. Camera malfunction? No problem, give it to me for repair and in a blink of an eye you get back a full-functioning, working device (what can I say, my warp-abilities come in very handy for such a time-consuming task). And just in case one is wondering why I'm sounding like a pro right now, let's just say that Ignis is a good teacher of proper mannerism and of respectable expression of language for the sole purpose to sound like an adult (or more like a high-strung freak of politeness) if a situation arises where it's required to act a certain way. It's uncanny how I even start to sound like Ignis at times, and to think I'll turn only fourteen years of age in a few months of time! Heaven, Ignis' effective means to drill his dry knowledge into my sleepy brain can be frightening at times.

By now it might have become understandable that it's definitely high time for me to get a hold of a new friend to influence my current lifestyle to another level. I want my constrained horizon to widen up. I desperately need to feel my young age. I long to joke around and to misbehave with somebody close to me whom I can trust. Ignis is... well, Ignis. As much as I appreciate his loyalty and sincere friendship, he's all work and no fun. It's as if he turned into a mother hen overnight. And Gladio? He doesn't really count because his priorities have changed. He's three years older than I am, and for now we live mostly apart. At sixteen, a legal age in Lucis where one is allowed to use a sword in defense, he's now being taught proper combat in the military. I can't wait for him to come back. I try not to be envious. Because he has all those high-ranked Kingsglaive around the clock assigned to him who personally teach him how to fight. Sounds really exciting, and this also sounds exactly like what I would prefer to do. But instead, I find myself going to a boring, public school, where I am being fawned over all day long by everyone. I feel like I'm some kind of an exotic animal belonging to a surreal kingdom of an extinct species.

Anyways, Prompto so far seems to be a breath of fresh air in my programmed course of reality. He's the Neo in my Matrix.

In my reply, I promised to Luna to protect and care for Prompto to the best of my abilities. But I also admit of doing this out of selfish reasons, I just want him to be my friend. My behavior in the past few days showed me a side of myself to which I wasn't aware of harboring until now. There is something about Prompto that makes me act differently. It's a thrilling experience to finally have found someone worth the trouble of following every hour around in hopes to get a hold of him. It feels like a secret mission as I stare impatiently at the clock on the wall, day after day, hour after hour.

So today again, I find myself in the process of watching with growing frustration how time seems to slow down every single damn second, every damn time my eyes are following those slim watch hands, silently urging them to tick by faster. I swear that my eyeballs are in danger of rolling out of my skull, counter-clockwise, if class doesn't end anytime soon!

Then, finally, as soon as the bell rings, heralding another glorious ten minutes break in between the boring lessons, I jump up from my chair and leave the class room in a rush, not caring how my precious homework lying on my table suddenly flutters down on the floor in the storm of my haste.

I quickly run out of breath as I rush through the hallways, searching for Prompto in every dark corner. Yet again, I can't find the interesting fellow anywhere. Such a shame. I even brought a famous book full of beautiful photography with me today, wanting to discuss the jaw-dropping content with him.

Hm, could he be hiding from me? No, it can't be...

Did I scare him off? I mean, it's not everyday that THE famous Prince of Lucis is following you around, right? Eos forbid, to outsiders I might even come off as a stalker. Prompto seems to harbor a shy persona, so who knows, I have to take every possible outcome in consideration.

But meanwhile, I decide to just curse the facts of being reborn as a political figure and to be held by the people of Lucis to such a high esteem to hell and back. I never understood what the great deal was about being a Prince, nor have I ever cared about the true importance of my father's position as the King of this nation.

People can be truly ridiculous. I'm still me, I'm still human! I wish everyone could see that.

I reprimand myself for getting depressed over this stale issue again, so I force myself to stay patient, to stay optimistic. Indeed, being of royal blood has brought me nothing but grief, pain and loneliness so far, but I refuse for the negativity to overcome my heart and for it to stifle all hope inside of me. Prompto is different. In all instances where I had the pleasure to meet him he didn't fawn over my fame at all. He seemed so honest with his clumsy attempts (which are kinda endearing now that I think about them) to befriend me.

I'm going to find Prompto and become his friend, no, his BEST friend. Even if it's the last thing I'll do.

Giving up now is not an option.

I'm an optimist after all.

**... **

In the afternoon, of course, it's time for me to pick up that optimism and toss it out the window by its scruff. Because I can feel my class mates' stares drill irritating holes into the back of my head, intensifying my already huge frustration which is currently clogged up in my gut like an undigested, mushy soup of leafy vegetables. A puke inducing dish, which by the way I hate with a passion yet unsurpassed. I guess my unusual, skittish behavior all day made the people around me start to question my sanity. Not that I would ever care about what others think of me, but their ogling stares ruffle my feathers the wrong way, today even more so than ever before. It's becoming harder to ignore the longer I'm in this room.

When class ends, bless Eos, I go for another stroll around the whole school campus in hopes to catch Prompto unaware somewhere, careful of not stumbling over the arduous working members of my infamous fan club.

Well, where in the world could Prompto be? At home? Maybe he called in sick. I didn't catch a glimpse of him all week and now I honestly start to worry about his whereabouts.

Heaving a huge sigh, I walk towards my father's car in resignation. From afar I can already see Ignis getting out of the car to meet me, he's holding the suicide doors wide open. He thinks that I've grown a healthy dose of irrational fear. All because of those nasty, automatic doors. They once have jammed my hand and it hurt like hell afterward. A severe pain that couldn't be cured by any kind of potion for weeks. It was quite the traumatic experience.

When I reach the car, I slow my final steps down to a snail's pace to glance around me a few times. Still no sign of Prompto.

Tomorrow is Friday. Last day of the week at school, last chance of the week to meet him. If he doesn't show up tomorrow, I'll need to find out where he lives. But how do I get a hold of his address without becoming suspicious?

Great. Now I really start to sound like a creepy stalker.

I seem to take longer than usual to get into the car, because Ignis immediately inquires, "Noct, what's wrong?"

Letting my eyes drift over each empty street corner, careful to appear as nonchalant as possible, it wouldn't do for Ignis to find out my new obsession, I sound sad to my own ears despite forcing myself not to when I answer softly, "It's nothing."

As I make myself comfortable on the backseat of the place I feel most safe, my eyes do not stop to check out the area where Prompto once continuously appeared to spy on me, not until the driver turns the car around the corner, which is rending my ongoing fixation on that special road impossible. Again, I start to feel the sadness and resignation creep up my spine.

But then I shake my head, staring down at my hands as they clutch the fabric of my black trousers firmly.

No, I won't give up.

This is for Luna, my dearest friend.

This is for Prompto, a stranger of whom I grew to think very fondly over such a short instance of time. He deserves it for the mere fact that he so selflessly cared for Pryna when she was lost and hurt.

It's decided then.

For the first time in my life I'll use my position as the Prince of Lucis to get my selfish way.

What I'm about to do is not wrong.

I have to find out if Prompto is alright.

By any means necessary.

**... **

Today is Friday the thirteenth. How very fitting.

I've done the unthinkable today. The horror of all horrors.

Ugh, and now I feel guilty for having just exploited my power to get Prompto's address. It was ridiculously easy to charm Prompto's teacher around my little finger for him to hand out all the private information I needed. I really feel kind of bad now. Is this how my father feels whenever he has to deal with his heavy duties? Manipulating others to gain the upper hand in political matters? How is he able to handle something so vile as this all the time and still stay as grounded as he is?

Argh, I don't want to think about this right now, it's depressing.

At least now I have a genuine alibi to visit Prompto's home. So this was worth all the hassle. I got permission from his teacher to bring his week's worth of homework to his home. I just found out that he has to turn it in next Monday sharp. I fear this weekend will be hell for him and I don't think he'll be able to finish his assignments in time without my help, sick or not.

So I did the unthinkable yet again. This is such a horrible day.

I used my power again and manipulated my private teacher at home to postpone and re-assign my weekend duties to next Saturday. If my father ever hears of what I've done, he'll be severely disappointed. Don't misunderstand, I love my father, he's the best. I try at all times my hardest to impress him, to catch up to him. I take my duty to be a shining example to the people of Lucis serious. Well, most of the time. But I know this stunt of mine today will surely bear consequences and this will take some serious damage to my honor and pride... but I have this inkling that Prompto will be worth all of it.

And then, I did something unthinkable again. Yeah, this isn't the end of it yet.

I used my advantage to manipulate Ignis to stay away from home and to pretend that I'm not available for the whole evening because he's in the process of teaching me the art of fishing. Everyone knows how much I like fishing, so officially he and I have gone for a fancy fishing session. I can't express my gratitude to Ignis with proper words for agreeing to this madness! I admit to have underestimated him. I couldn't sleep a wink all night because I feared he would decline all of my reckless shenanigans.

And right now, I sit in my fathers car, utterly excited for doing something so reckless and forbidden for my status, eagerly on my way to Prompto's home. The driver, Sius, has promised to take this secret to his grave. And now I can't help but wonder how many other secrets he has to take to his grave? Wondering if my father has acted in the same way as I did mere minutes ago? Is this how my father feels the entire time he has to keep deadly information secret from everyone?

Argh, again, this is not the right time to mull over this. Get a grip!

We already have arrived at the destination.

Uff, I'm growing nervous for no reason at all, my legs feel all jittery all of a sudden.

I mean, nothing can go wrong, right? I'll ring the bell, hand over his homework, offer my help to finish his assignments sooner.

Easy.

But my heart doesn't seem to agree as it switches over to survival mode. That's how fast it beats now in my chest.

I lift my head up. I can see Prompto's house properly now that the car screeches to a halt in front of it.

My hands start to sweat like crazy.

Eos, I can only hope that he's doing well.

**... **

"Hello? Is anybody home?"

I'm forced to call out for someone, despite not wanting to alert anyone in the neighborhood about my presence. When nobody answers, I sneak around the house, hopeful that I won't look suspicious to the neighbors as I take a look through the dark windows from the outside and trying to catch a glimpse of what's going on the inside. I already rang the bell for the last ten minutes nonstop. I'm patient, but not that patient to wait any longer.

I wonder if I should leave? Did I arrive at an inconvenient time?

"Hello? Who is there?"

Prompto's raspy voice reaches my ears just about the time when I make my way back to the entrance of his house in disappointment.

And there he is, looking somewhat sickly and unkempt to my sharp eyes.

For whatever reason I feel my mouth go dry. What should I do? I'm a nervous wreck inside.

Now or never. He won't bite.

After what feels like ages, I stammer out, "I-it's me, Noctis."

His blue eyes grow in size when our eyes meet. I swear there is a slight cracking noise of his neck as his head turns in a sudden, swift motion in my direction.

I wince. That must have hurt.

"W-What...," he stutters.

I continue to watch him in growing fond amusement, finding him impossibly endearing when he shuffles his bare feet and stumbles slightly over the doorstep from shock at the obvious unexpected sight that greets him like a bucket of ice-cold water.

"Prince Noctis! I-uh-what-why-err-you here?"

**... **

* * *

  
To be continued.


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noctis has to face something he wasn't prepared for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya,
> 
> next update :).
> 
> Enjoy everyone!  
> Thanks again for all the reviews, kudos and bookmarks! Lots and lots of hugs!  
> Kamuel

 

* * *

 

**Chapter Three**

**...**

Prompto's wide eyes would look comical if his face wouldn't look so sickly pale. His mouth hangs open, seemingly speechless.

Now I start to feel bad that I surprised him like that. Maybe I should have announced my arrival beforehand. But being who I am, well, let's just say that my social skills are still somewhat underdeveloped and in a dire need to be polished.

I try to calm down my fast beating heart, this is not the time to get nervous. I don't even know why I feel on edge in the first place. This is so unlike me.

Now that I'm only two steps away from where Prompto stands, I can see how pale he really looks, the dark circles under his eyes enormous. My nonexistent social skills aside, I can't help but furrow my brows with worry as I ask softly, "How are you feeling? Everything okay?"

As if waking up from a self-induced trance, his blue eyes blink a few times before getting all overwhelmed again and stuttering, "P-Prince Noctis, I-yeah, I mean, yes, I'm okay, but, w-whatareyoudoinghere?"

The crinkles on my forehead deepen even further. He's obviously not okay. Is it because I'm the Prince of Lucis that he seems to withhold the truth? I don't like it. I want him to be honest with me.

"Just call me Noctis," I insist firmly and then I add, "I'm here because I bring you your homework."

"Oh, my homework..." He stares at my bag which I hold with both of my hands against my chest (the photobook inside is heavy), then his eyes drift back up to my eyes for a few long seconds, probably still trying to comprehend that it's really me standing in front of his home. "I-ehm, how rude of me, please, c-come in, Prince Noctis." Then he takes a quick look behind him, making an inviting gesture.

"Noctis," I say again, insisting one more time for him to call me only by my name.

For some reason his face gets all red now. "Ah, o-okay. Please come in, Noctis."

"Thank you."

Clutching the bag with my hands tightly, I follow him inside. This is the first time, in my what would be a complete sheltered life, where I'm invited into somebody else's private home. So this is a novel experience for me and it's as exciting as it is frightening at the same time.

"I'm sorry for intruding," I blurt out quickly. Honestly, I still feel bad for not announcing my visit.

In the bright lighted corridor, I first take off my shoes, placing them neatly next to each other on the floor. When I'm about to take off my jacket, Prompto stands already behind me to help me out of it. "Ah, thanks," I say, feeling somewhat shaken, having been taken completely by surprise.

I watch in silence how he hangs my jacket on the hook of his wardrobe, treating the fabric as if it were the most precious thing he has ever held in his hands, and then he takes one step backwards, slightly tripping over his own shoes and falling backwards on the floor with a hard thud, his glasses going askew in the process.

"Ah, wait, I'll help you." I step forward to get his hands into a tight grip to help him upward, this time I'm prepared to pull him up with all of my strength. "Are you all right?" I ask once he's standing upright again.

He pulls the fabric of his shirt to cover up his belly and clears his throat awkwardly, avoiding my eyes. "Y-yes, thank you."

He's... well, adorable. I hide my smile behind my hand. This reminds me of the first time when we met, where he tripped over that pole in his haste to run up to me.

"Please, this way." He walks into his living room, showing me the way, then he holds a chair out for me to sit at the table.

Prompto keeps surprising me this evening. 'His manners are impeccable,' this is what Ignis would say now if he could see him.

Inclining my head in thanks, I place my bag on the table and then sit down.

"W-would you like something to drink? Water, tea?"

I glance him up and down. He doesn't look well at all. I understand the bad state of health he is in and I don't want to make his condition worse, but on the other hand he does look as if a cup of hot tea would do him some good.

"Yes, green tea please. Can I help you to prepare it?" Well, now that I did ask this question, I have to admit something first. I have absolutely no idea how to make proper tea. I'm completely clueless in all things cooking and preparing food and drinks. But... I'm willing to try if this means that Prompto has less work do to and it eases some of the obvious strain on his already weakened body.

Now that I think of it... why didn't he take any potions to get better? Didn't he consult a doctor?

"Goodness no, y-you are my guest! It would be incredibly rude to ask of you something like that." He stares at me like I've grown a second head on my shoulder.

"Oh, I see, sorry." I duck my head slightly, because I feel like he just reprimanded me for something that should have been obvious to me from the start. This became awkward quickly. I still have a lot to learn...

"Please wait until your tea is ready." He says in a firm voice, sounding proud, and then he turns around to walk into his kitchen, his legs slightly wobbling.

His tired looking face really worries me, his lips are very pale and this is always a bad sign. I want to ask what happened to him. But I don't know how. It's enough that I invited myself into his home unannounced, I wouldn't want to trouble him with questions whose answers might not be any of my business.

And so I wait.

I take this opportunity to look around his living room. So Pryna was here.

Everything looks so clean and tidy, almost too sterile, as if it's not lived in by a whole family. It's evening, he's quite ill and he's all alone at home. Maybe his parents are still at work? Does he have siblings?

I didn't notice for how long I mused over his living circumstances, but when I snap back to reality, I notice that Prompto didn't come back yet.

"Prompto? You okay?" I inquire to make sure that he's indeed still in the kitchen.

There is no answer. And there is absolute silence in the house.

I can't help but start to feel slightly sick in my stomach with dread. So I slide down from my chair, listening to my instincts to go and look after him. I enter the kitchen area, asking once more, "Prompto? Is everything oka-" But then my eyes stumble over his limp body as he lies unconscious in the middle of the kitchen floor.

"Prompto! Oh Eos, Prom!" With wide strides I rush towards him, crouching down to feel for his pulse.

Okay, don't panic! He's alive, but unconscious.

Think Noctis, think!

With trembling fingers I take out my smart phone and call for the chauffeur to help us, who thankfully is still inside the car in front of Prompto's home. My voice shakes and I feel close to tears when I say on the phone, "Hello? Sius, it's me, Noctis. My friend is unconscious, please, I need your help!"

"Hold on! I'm on my way."

Okay, stay calm Noctis. Breathe. Help is on the way.

My hands are shaky when I place my smart phone back into my pocket. And then I place my trembling hands on each side of Prompto's pale face. "Prom, stay with me, do you hear me? Everything will be all right." I know that he can't hear me, but I need to say something to calm myself down.

Heaven, I start to shake like a leaf everywhere from the fear that this might be something serious. Never before had I been feeling this helpless. This clearly shows to me how young and inexperienced in life I still am and I don't like this one bit.

"Prom, wait a little, I'll be right back..." I say to him before running out of the kitchen area to open the door for Sius.

"What happened?" Sius rushes after me as I show him the way to where Prompto lies unconscious.

I'm rubbing my sweaty hands on my trousers, my voice still weak with tremors and tears well up in my eyes. "I-I don't know. He seemed to be very ill, he wanted to make tea for us and then somehow he fell unconscious. Please Sius, please help him. I-I don't know what to do..."

Right now I'm such an emotional mess that I just can't focus. I have a hard time breathing, and my worry and fear for Prom is rising to unfathomable dimensions.

"Stay calm, Noctis. I got this. You don't need to worry," Sius says soothingly, then places his medical practitioner's case next to Prom when he kneels down, and then I can only watch him as he takes care of my unconscious friend. All chauffeurs who are assigned to the royal family are professionally trained in combat and experienced in medical activities. Despite my shock, I try to memorize everything Sius does, just in case something like this might happen again so that I am able to help Prom next time.

He takes different potions out of his bag and I carefully follow all his versed movements while he administers each medicine on Prom.

"Noctis, take a towel and make it wet with cold water, then bring it to me."

"Y-yes." I jump up and search for a clean towel. When I found one, I rush to the sink to make it wet. Running back to Sius, I pass over the wet fabric, and again, I watch carefully how Sius cleans up Prom's face in soothing motions.

"Look if you can find a bucket somewhere," Sius looks around, warning me, "because your friend might vomit once he wakes up."

I'm looking frantically for something that might serve as a bucket and once I do, I place it next to Sius. Heaven, I feel like my own stomach might turn over any second now, I'm _that_ worried right now. "D-did you find out what's wrong with him? He was so pale before, and then his legs wobbled when he walked into the kitchen earlier, he seemed so tired."

Sius shakes his head in a confused manner. "The symptoms I saw so far are typical for food poisoning, but what makes this even more puzzling, he seems dehydrated and malnourished in addition to that, which makes no sense. That's why he fell unconscious. It's like he starved himself for a long time but simultaneously ate something which could have triggered this complex response from his body. He's lucky you are here this evening, else only Eos knows what could have happened to him if this would have gone on."

I grow all pale when I hear this.

Eos! Prom starved himself?! Food poison? Dehydrated and malnourished? What in the world was he doing? Didn't his parents notice?!

"I've done what I could, the potions gave him back the nourishment his body needed to properly function again, and they also purified his system. He probably has to purge the rest either through vomiting and/or bowel movement. Either way, your friend is safe."

Thank Eos, I'm so relieved to hear that... I feel as if it's now my turn to faint.

Sius sends me a soothing smile, adding, "You have done well, Prince Noctis."

And now I can't stop a huge hiccup as I choke back another batch of fresh tears. My hands are balling into tight fists from the growing frustration inside. "But don't you see? I couldn't do anything! If it weren't for you Prom could have died!"

He rises his free hand to ruffle my hair. "Noctis," he starts to say, but just when he wants to continue, a harsh cough echoes through the room, alerting both of us to Prom waking up.

"Prom!"

Bending down towards my new friend, I caress the side of his pale face softly. "Prom, how do you feel?"

His eyes open slowly, looking in confusion first at Sius and then at me. "I-I don't feel well."

"Noctis, get him a glass of water. Quick." Sius continues to rub the wet towel over Prompto's pale face and neck while holding the bucket ready, completely focused on his task.

I'm doing as Sius requested, and when I arrive with the full glass in my hand Prom starts to dry-heave into the bucket. It's just stomach acid that comes out, but this is what Sius meant with purging the poisoned remains out of his body. I wince with sympathy.

Poor Prom... I wish I could take his suffering away. I rush to his side and place the cool glass against his lips as soon as the dry-heaving stops.

"Sip slowly," Sius says to him.

As Prom starts to sip from the cold water, I rub his back with my free hand, trying in my own way to give him a little comfort. I try to show him that I'm there for him. I now know that he will get better soon, but the shock of this evenings events have rattled my nerves and I just can't stop to worry about him.

After a few, long minutes have passed, Sius does a last check-up on Prom. "Do you still feel sick? Are you in any pain?"

"No... I'm fine now. I feel better, thank you." Prom smile is infectious and I smile back when he shyly glances at me.

The relief that I feel right now is indescribable.

"Prince Noctis, I think it's best to leave your friend to rest for the night. As you know, a night full of rest will take care of everything else. There is nothing more we can do." Sius closes his bag and makes himself ready to leave.

"What? No! I want to stay."

Sius frowns. "But your duties-"

"Have all been already postponed and placed to next week," is my dry answer.

"But the King-"

I interrupt Sius again. "By all means, this is officially my time off now, and I got to decide what I want to do with it, and I say that I want to stay and take care of my friend. For the entire weekend." I say in a resolute sounding voice.

Sius' eyes narrow at me. "What about your protection?"

"You are here, aren't you? Deal with it." I say with finality, using one more time my power as the Prince of Lucis to get my way today. Might as well go all the way to hell. Consequences be damned. Prom needs me.

All of a sudden Prom's gasp echoes loudly in the silence of the room. "Friend? Noctis, did you just say that I-I'm your friend?" He stares at me as if he just saw a ghost, his blue eyes wide as saucers.

Prom's timing to point out the obvious is as adorable as ever.

"Yes, of course. We're friends."

My smile must be infectious as well, because I have never seen Prom smile that brightly as he does now.

**...**

* * *

  
To be continued.

 


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noctis rides an emotional rollercoaster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone,
> 
> this chapter wasn't easy to write. So I hope that I did a good job in describing and explaining everything, phew.
> 
> As always thank you all so much for your comments and kudos!
> 
> Please enjoy reading everyone!
> 
> Kamuel
> 
> P.S.: Prom is such a sweet-heart ;____;!

 

* * *

 

  
** Chapter Four **

**... **

"Uhm, don't think strange of me, but this is the first time I sleep over at a friend's house. So, what I want to say is... thank you."

Prom looks up from the sink, holding his tooth brush up in the air for a moment. He seems surprised. His mouth is full of white tooth paste when he exclaims with wonder, "Woow, for me thishh ishh the firshht time to have a friend over to shhpend the night tshooo!"

Despite his fatigue, his face glows with happiness and it's like he's lightening up the whole bathroom with his wide smile. At this moment I'm really glad over my decision. I still have a slight bad conscience for postponing my duties, but hell, it feels good to be the one to make him that happy.

"Ishhn't thhhish eshhciiting?" he asks, waving his tooth brush around in his obvious excitement.

"Yup." I nod eagerly in response and I send him a slight mischievous smile, because this feels as if we both just shared a top-secret secret. I have the feeling that this weekend will be special for us.

And so, we both continue to diligently brush our teeth. Actually it's kind of funny, because I don't know who was the one to start this in the first place, but all of a sudden both of us speed up the teeth brushing as if it became a competition of who finishes first. Grinning to each other, we continue to make the silliest of sounds. All those funny, little brush-strokes against our teeth echo and reverberate in the bathroom, both wanting to see now who is better, funnier and faster at it.

This is too much fun!

In his haste, Prom has tooth paste smeared all around the lower half of his face and he starts making some funny faces which all at once makes me laugh out loud. I can't help it, I can't stop myself, he's just too funny!

And then I realize that I don't look any better when he points his finger at me and joins me, holding himself upright on the sink so that he won't fall on the floor from laughing so much. And if this isn't enough yet, he poses around in the image of famous actors, exaggerating and articulating wildly with his arms and this is so hilarious that I feel as if my eyeballs jump out any moment! Now I honestly start to fear that my intestines will come out of my throat in addition to that.

"Y-you sh-should-hahaaaaha seee-hahhaaa yourself! Ss-oo-hahaa funny," I wheeze out, trying to breathe in and out properly.

Really, it's obvious that we are trying to calm down, because the laughter starts to seriously hurt our bellies, but then, out of the blue, his tooth brush slips out of his hand and falls directly into the loo which is located right next to him.

We stare in complete silence at the now drowning tooth brush. And then we look back at each other with wide eyes.

Somehow this was such an unexpected thing to happen, that not even one moment later we fall on the floor, our feet no longer able to support us as we howl like maniacs from the hilarity of the situation!

I think none of us has ever laughed that hard in their lives. Tears escape the corner of our eyes from the sheer exertion and our faces are red beyond recognition.

"S-sstop, Noctisss, I can't anymooore! Haaaaahahahhaaaahaa! Hurrtss! Hahahaa!" Prom laughs and whines simultaneously, holding his belly as he rolls on the floor.

"Ssstop yourself first, y-you are the reason I l-laugh sssoo hard! Hahahaahaaahaa!"

I honestly can't say for how long we rolled on the floor from laughter that evening.

But what I can say for sure is, that this will become one of the most memorable moments of our lives. And little did I know that there were a lot more to come...

**... **

"What? Absolutely not."

There is no way I'll let this happen tonight.

We stand now inside Prom's bedroom, ready to go to sleep. But there is still something holding us back. Quite silly actually.

I have to make my point clear to Prom that I refuse to let him sleep on the floor.

After he almost starved and poisoned himself? Eos, please. How can he expect me to occupy his bed when his body needs some proper rest? Prince or not, I could never be that cruel and selfish.

"Yes, you will. You are my guest." Prom insists stubbornly, clutching a pillow to his chest as if it were his last lifeline.

"No. This is your bed." I stay stubborn in return.

After everything he had gone through this evening, I'm sorry, but he's delusional if he thinks that he can get away with this nonsense.

I suggest calmly, shrugging my shoulders nonchalantly, "I'm okay with sleeping in the car. I can sleep anywhere anyway."

I mean it. King of Sleep, remember?

Prom stares at me in complete shock. "W-what are you saying? Noctis, we are friends. I couldn't possibly let you spend the night in a car! Just take my bed and I'll sleep right here next to you. I'll make a makeshift bed on the floor for me. I really don't mind." He turns his back to me, throwing some extra blankets and pillows on the floor in front of him, a second one of his fluffy pillows adorably squashed in between his arms as he adjusts his blanket with his feet.

I don't know what happened, but the sudden backbone he seems to have grown this evening makes me smile fondly. This must mean he feels much better than before. The only downside to this is, I can't seem to get my way as easily as usual, as he and I are in danger of arguing back and forth to infinity if I allow for this to go on for much longer. It's like we clash our stubborn pillows in a dramatic battle of wills without any of us getting into a true pillow-fight. But as I take a good look down at my clothes, now dressed in an over-sized pajama, surrounded by a ton of smiling teddy bear prints (in my humble opinion quite the battle armor in disguise), well, let's just say he has absolutely no chance to win this argument this evening. I feel invigorated just by the sheer cuteness of it all.

And so I cross my arms to think fast about a satisfying solution which should suit both of us. Meanwhile I observe Prom playing with the corner of his pillows, he's yawning and muttering under his breath some things which I can't identify because they are too faint for me to hear. He's obviously dog-tired, and I start to feel guilty for being so stubborn over this. But he sure is as stubborn as I am. And I fully admit to like this side of him. Nobody dared to defy me before and I find it to be not only refreshing but exhilarating as well.

Prom rubs his eyes tiredly, glancing at me once to see if I made my decision.

Well, as entertaining as I think this banter is, Prom really needs to sleep. His health and comfort has priority.

Heaving a sigh, I walk towards his bed and get under the blanket. I can feel Prom's confused gaze follow my movements. Sliding on one side, I hold the blanket up and make an inviting gesture for him to join me.

His bed is big enough for both of us after all.

Prom stares at me in complete bafflement.

"Jump in, what are you waiting for? Let's go to sleep."

"Uhm... o-okay." he says after what seems like ages.

I watch him join me on his bed with a sheepish looking smile, his ears red, and then I cover both of us up with the warm blanket, snuggling into the soft mattress under me. Our sides are touching and his warmth reaches me immediately. Prom's clean and unique smell envelops me and this is so comforting that it doesn't take long for me to be on the verge of falling asleep.

"Thank you... for everything.", Prom whispers.

"No, I thank you." I reply softly, smiling into the darkness with my eyes already closed. "Good night, Prom."

"Good night, Noctis..."

**... **

Something feels wrong.

My instincts are immediately alert and with a sudden bolt of adrenaline I wake up and sit upright.

The light in the bathroom is switched on, and I can hear slight, strange noises coming out. At first I don't understand what's going on, my mind too tired to catch up with my surroundings, but then I recognize the strange noises to be Prom throwing up.

Oh no!

In an instant I jump up and rush to his side. "Prom, are you okay? Can I help you?"

"S-sorry for waking you up..." he says weakly after his stomach has finally calmed down.

He looks dreadfully pale again and my hand rubs over his back soothingly. "It's okay, that's why I'm here. I didn't want you to be all alone when you feel so sick."

Prom's smile looks incredibly sad for a short moment, then he flushes the toilet before he goes to rinse his mouth at the sink. His body language now is so completely different to the one hours before.

Did I... did I say something wrong?

But then the memory of what Sius taught me yesterday is distracting me from my worries, so while Prom brushes his teeth again I use the opportunity to walk into the kitchen and to take a wet towel with me, and in afterthought I also bring a glass of cold water back to Prom's bedroom.

"Come here and lie down," I say softly and motion to Prom with the towel in my hand to lie down on the bed. "Sius said your body still needs lots of fluid. Drink something first."

He hesitates, avoiding my eyes, but then he takes a few small, careful sips of water and when he's done, I place the half-full glass on his nightstand for later. After he made himself comfortable under the blanket, I sit down carefully on the other side to start to dab and rub the damp towel in soothing motions over the clammy and pale skin of his face and neck, in the same way Sius did yesterday.

"This feels refreshing... it's nice." he whispers, his voice cracking as his body trembles. He looks as if he's close to tears.

I furrow my brows with worry when I watch him swallow back his tears several times, but then his emotions seem to get the upper hand because he starts to sob in a heartbreaking manner, hiding his face from me with his hands.

"Prom..."

I bite on my lip, unsure, starting to feel helpless because I don't know what to do now.

Is this my fault? I didn't want to make him cry.

He's sobbing harder, facing away from me and he leans on his left side so that I can't see his tears.

My heart goes out for him, I always feel sad when people cry in my presence, so I place the wet towel on the nightstand and slide closer to him to place my hand on his arm for comfort, awkwardly petting and caressing over the fabric of his pajama in hopes that my presence can soothe whatever emotional pain he is in. This is what my father always did to me when I felt anguish...

I wonder what happened that made Prom so upset? I don't want him to feel sad.

What can I do to make him smile again?

Tremors upon tremors wreck his body as he stifles his sobs into the pillow below, and when I see that this must be something very serious for him to cry like that, I quickly lie down next to him and raise one arm up to hug him from behind. It's a somewhat uncomfortable position, so I slide even closer to him, and then I continue to caress him softly, whispering, "Hey... it's okay. I'm here."

It takes him awhile to calm down, but I continue to whisper soothing things and I keep hugging him tightly, not letting go until I'm sure that he's okay again.

For a moment I get the impression that he's fallen asleep. But then he sniffles adorably, wiping his tears away with the back of his hand and whispers back, "I-I'm sorry..."

I huff slightly. "What for? Because you're human? Despite what everybody says, it's okay for guys to cry. It's okay to be emotional. It's liberating. When I was younger I did it all the time... well, still do it occasionally but that's not the point I want to make."

Prom snorts out a sound that might be either a laugh or a sob.

"For me it's been years... I haven't cried in a long time." he admits to me, his trembling voice raspy from crying so much.

"Why didn't you?"

"I... I didn't allow myself to cry, because I didn't want to appear weak in front of everyone. It was much easier to ignore and swallow everything down. As you can see, I'm overweight. What I did instead was compensating my need for comfort with eating. Besides, crying wouldn't have changed anything."

This comes as a shock to me. I don't know what to say, so I just squeeze his arm lightly to show him my sympathy.

The silence drags on for some minutes, and then he's turning around to face me. I let go of his arm and make room for him to settle on his other side. Now it became possible for me to look into his red, puffy eyes.

"If eating is to obtain comfort for you, then tell me, why did you almost starve yourself? Did something happen?" I finally ask the question that burned on my mind for the last few hours, ever since Sius revealed to me the reason of why Prom fainted yesterday.

He's avoiding my eyes again, looking upset.

"If this is a line I shouldn't cross, of course you don't have to force yourself to tell me. As your friend I just worry about you... friends care about each other," I add before staying silent.

In afterthought it's amazing what Luna taught me when she and I met several years ago. It was because of her that I learned what true friendship is like. It's thanks to her that Ignis and Gladio became such good friends, because I let them in and because I talked to them if I needed their advice and support.

And now it's my turn. I can finally give back what I so kindly received from everyone.

I wish to care for Prom in the same way that Luna cared for me. It just feels right.

Prom sniffles adorably once again, surprisingly opening up to me when he says softly, "You know... I promised someone something important, and I thought, to achieve my goals, to be accepted and not to become a burden, that I needed to lose weight... I began to eat the right food, I started to do various sports too, but then..."

Now things start to make sense.

"Then my parents came for a visit."

What?

My eye brows rise up to my hairline in confusion and disbelief.

Did I hear right? His parents  _ came for a visit _ ? So they don't live here? What in the world?

"Each month they come by to check up on me. They usually sign all the papers that I need for school and then leave some money on my table. And then they leave. People think my parents live here with me. But in truth I live alone."

I can only stare at him wide-eyed.

What kind of parents would let their own child live all alone?

"But this time they noticed that I started to care for myself, that I was much happier than usual, so my mother started to ask all kinds of questions, and I thought that finally she would be able to accept me when I told her the true reason of why I wanted to change myself for the better..." Prom's voice starts to shake, and he takes a deep breath before continuing, "This was the first time when I realized that she didn't love me at all. Of course, I somehow knew it all along but I didn't want to see it. Didn't want to think about it, because it would hurt too much."

Tears well up in his eyes again and I reach my hand out to grasp his in a tight squeeze.

He looks up into my eyes, his voice choked up despite sounding harsh when he says, "She mocked me. She said all kinds of horrible things to me to make me feel bad about myself, to make me lose my confidence. She said I'll never lose weight. That I'll never reach my goal because I'm her pathetic son. Then she worked herself up to hurt me even more, telling me that I'm a good-for-nothing son. That I'm a burden to her and that she wished I've never been born."

For the entire time a stricken expression is on my face, and I feel my own tears well up at the cruelty.

How?

How can a mother do this to her own child?

I don't understand. My mother... when she was still alive, she loved me and appreciated me with all her being.

"Noctis, I live all alone, b-because my mother is mentally ill. The authorities separated us, because otherwise I would live in a constant danger of her hurting me in ways that could become irreparable..."

He rises a hand to hide his face from me again as he continues to cry silently.

I... Eos. I just don't know what to say.

So I do the only thing that Luna once taught me to do in such a situation.

I pull Prom into a fierce hug and share the same kind words that Luna once said to me.

"You have me now. You're alone no longer, I'm here to stay."

**... **

* * *

  
To be continued.

 


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noctis gets some insight into his feelings about Prom...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone,
> 
> I'm back ;). Sorry for the long wait, but real life demanded my humble presence and I was unable to get creative.
> 
> Wow, meanwhile so much happened in the FFXV-Universe! A new Brotherhood-Episode featuring Gladio's and Noct's past! And Dius, the unnamed hooded villain has finally officially been revealed! At least his Kingsglaive appearance (which is... admittedly different than I had imagined, lol, but handsome none the less!) His original name is Ravus. But I won't speak anymore about him and his origin, because for some of you dear readers this might be getting into spoiler category. Now I took the holy task upon myself to rewrite all parts of my stories starring Dius/Ravus to match Nomura-san's original vision. Phew... so much additional work ;_; haha.
> 
> Either way, dear readers, enjoy this chapter! After watching Episode 3 of the Brotherhood anime, there will be of course all kinds of influences flowing into this story as well :).
> 
> Till next time dears,
> 
> Kamuel
> 
> P. S.: all my stories are in the process of proper proof/beta reading now. I will update all chapters as soon as I get the revised and rewritten versions from my lovely beta readers back. Just wanted to give a small heads up to everyone, of why some chapters might change in the near future overnight, ha. Some of you might have already noticed how my writing has greatly improved over the past few weeks, I learned a lot! Yep! And I will continue to do so! All solely for your reading pleasure ;)

 

* * *

 

** Chapter Five **

**... **

Uhm... what exactly am I doing? Isn't it time for me to give each other some personal space?

Prom has long stopped crying, so I don't think he needs me to hug him anymore.

Right?

After all, we are both teenaged boys... and we still don't know each other well enough to stay in such an intimate position under the blanket for such a long time. I mean, for the first time I'm sleeping in someone else's bed. Shouldn't this start to feel embarrassing? Didn't Luna preach to me in the past, over and over, that invading somebody's personal space like that might be indecent behavior once I get older? That I should allow something like this to happen only with people I trust fully and truly care about?

Yet... I find myself not able to let go. Somehow, my heart feels heavy with emotional turmoil, touched by Prom's lonely life circumstances, and this makes me want to care for him, to trust and to protect him. These feelings urge me to hold him tightly and to whisper over and over that everything is going to be all right.

There are now so many reasons I feel drawn to Prom.

His shocking tale about his mother made me truly aware of how privileged and sheltered I had lived my life until now. I became aware of how blessed my own life circumstances are, despite the heavy responsibilities that seem to unstoppably creep up my spine the older I get.

But because of Prom's situation, I suddenly remember quite fondly how much Luna did care for me at the time when I visited Tenebrae, to heal my injured body. I was only eight years old, my mind fresh with terror from my near-death experience, I didn't understand much from the world and I was as naive as a child could be, an emotional wreck inside and one may say even emotionally needy. Luna's care and her protection came at the right time and it had felt so incredibly genuine and loving, for it didn't take me long to get completely attached to her gentle persona. Never before had I met somebody so compassionate and softhearted as her. So I couldn't help myself, I hugged her a lot, as many times as it was allowed, I did seek out her warmth at every given opportunity because she reminded me so much of my mother...

Well, I admit that soon getting fourteen years old doesn't make me a genius all of a sudden, I still don't understand much from the world, but it was Luna's strength and her faith in me that made me grow up much sooner than I would have had without her selfless and kind support over the years.

Her words from her latest message gave me the impression that Prom has the same qualities inside of him as she has. So far he truly seems to be as selfless and genuine and the same gentle person like Luna is.

And this time it isn't me who's suffering and who's in a need for emotional comfort.

It's Prom. My new, adorable friend.

But my strict upbringing makes me question if it's right to continue to hug him as intimately as we do right now. My brain cells scream at me 'Stop this! This is inappropriate!'

Well, is my brain right? Could this possibly be too much? Am I about to cross some unspoken boundaries? Honestly, I'm confused, because neither Ignis, nor Gladio, have ever shared with me such emotionally charged moments before. And those two are my best friends so this fact alone should tell me something. None of their friendly hugs have ever felt that way, have ever felt so meaningful and pleasant...

Prom suddenly heaves out a soft sigh and I can't stop a smile from forming on my lips when I feel the side of his tear stained face snuggle against my neck.

Ah, what am I doing? I give up. How can I still resist his adorable self? I need to stop question everything. This is pointless anyway. Prom is now my friend.

So what if we behave touchy-feely?

I finally give in to my urge to rub his back in soothing motions, squeezing his body closer to me with my arms while I feel him embracing me more tightly in response.

What do I even freak out for? Who cares about us hugging each other right now? There is nobody else in here who could judge my behavior, telling me what might be right or wrong.

Prom sneaked himself into my heart already. I'll continue to hold him for as long as he needs me to, awkwardness be damned. If anyone should know how important human warmth is, it should be me in the end.

Besides, it's been a long time for me since I've been hugged like that... so... this feels comforting... his warmth feels invigorating.

Everything feels so nice that I don't even notice how my eyes close... and how I slowly drift to sleep while hearing Prom's soft breaths next to my ear...

**... **

Well, that didn't take long.

For the first time in ages, I find myself wide awake and unable to fall asleep again.

Yeah, me, the King of Sleep. Awake. Go figure.

The curtains are drawn close, so I can't tell if it's dark because of it or because it's still night outside.

It's hot. I'm sweating like a piglet and the worst part is, I can't move. At least I shouldn't, if I don't want to wake up a certain adorable someone sleeping almost on top of me.

Well, on top is maybe kind of exaggerated, because in his sleep, Prom thought that my body would qualify nicely to get cuddled up by him like some precious, fluffy teddy bear. His heavy arm lies lazily across my chest, trapping me under his warmth which by now has become too much for my overheated skin. And not to forget to mention, his limp leg almost crushes me now into the mattress as it is thrown over the blanket to cool himself off from the stuffy heat inside the room. I guess this is the reason why I can't get back to sleep right now huh?

I huff silently in resignation, but I send Prom a fond smile despite the uncomfortable position I find myself in. After the ordeal he went through, Prom deserves the best kind of sleep that he can get.

I wonder what he's dreaming about now? Hopefully something nice.

And then, in a sudden source of inspiration, I close my eyes and I focus to call for Carbuncle, my dear friend from my dreams.

'Noct, how unusual for you to call upon me when you're awake. What can I do for you?'

'Carbuncle, may I ask you a favor? Could you visit my friend's dreams tonight and make sure that he's protected from harm? He recently had some very bad experiences and I don't want him get any nightmares. Please take care of him in my stead, can you do that?'

'Of course! You can count on me Noct!'

'You don't know how much this means to me...'

I can hear Carbuncle chuckle in my mind.

'You forget that I can feel everything that you can feel. I understand. Prom is my friend now too, don't worry, leave everything to me.'

'Thanks Carbuncle... what would I do without your help?'

Another chuckle, and then I hear a cute squeak in affirmation to my request before his presence disappears.

My eyes open to stare at the ceiling in thoughts. My mind can't help but drift back and forth, inevitably drifting back to Prom's upset face full of tears from a few hours ago.

Before he calmed down, he admitted to me that he starved himself because he desperately wanted to lose a lot of weight in a short period of time. But then he realized himself that his rash decision was a huge mistake. He underestimated the effects his body would experience under such duress. Eos only knows what could have happened to him if Sius and I weren't there yesterday.

I did promise to him to call up Ignis first thing in the morning. I'm sure that together we all are going to find a proper solution. Ignis is a born genius, he surely can come up with a healthy diet and a reasonable timetable for Prom's body to adjust to all the changes.

Uhm... but Eos, even the process of thinking makes me sweat heavily right now. It's getting unbearably hot.

But just when I'm about to move my leg in a fruitless attempt to get some cool air underneath the blanket, Prom's arm moves further up, sliding down on my shoulder and ending up almost choking me with its weight. I squeeze my eyes shut and try to be as careful as possible when I slowly push his heavy limb away.

"Mlnnngnhfff...Carbuncle hhhghlllmghlnggh thankyou umlllnghffff you'resocute'nfluffy mgnglllllfff socuuute..."

He ends up snoring slightly and I can't stop a sudden, amused chuckle when I hear him mumble some more unintelligible words about Carbuncle in his sleep. So my fluffy friend has reached the realm of Prom's dreams. I'm relieved that at least now Prom is able to dream of something beautiful and nice. I trust Carbuncle to know what my new friend needs the most right now.

Then finally, finally I'm free to move my body because Prom turns on his back. Phew, he doesn't wake up when I'm moving around to find a comfortable position myself. Hopefully I can catch some more needed sleep, I'm sure that later today I'll need all my energy to help Prom finish his huge amount of homework.

And then I can't wait for us to have some serious fun together...

**... **

"...ctis? Noctis!"

Prom shakes my shoulder a few times too many.

"Hnngg..." I don't want to wake up yet, waving his hand away when I feel my mind to be on the verge to fall asleep again. It's so snugly and warm here... Prom's bed is soooo soooft...

"Noctis, please, wake up!" Prom whispers desperately, sounding anxious to my ears, so I turn my head to my new friend to glance at him sleepily.

"Why? What's wrong? Are you okay?"

I feel so tired. And in addition to that the morning sun manages to blare directly into my eyes and I would love nothing more than to pull the soft blanket over my head to shut out the whole world around me. But the growing worry for Prom's well being helps to conquer my weaker self, at least a little bit.

"You need to get out of bed. Now. There are people waiting for you in the living room..."

I blink my sleepy eyes a few times in confusion, forcing my foggy brain to catch up with reality when I see him wringing his hands in obvious discomfort.

Did I hear right?

Did Prom just say there are people in his living room?

"Uhm, who is it?"

"Please hurry up, I think they are going to murder me if I don't get you there any second now."

Okay, this sounds ominous, surely he's exaggerating. It's probably only Ignis and Sius, they are the only ones knowing of my true whereabouts after all. So I decide that this can wait a bit longer.

But just when I'm about to turn around to sleep a bit more, Prom shakes my shoulder again.

"Noctis, I beg you, you need to get up."

With eyes squeezed tightly shut I take the fluffy pillow with me as I lift my upper body up into a somewhat sitting position.

"Do I really need to?"

Prom squeezes my shoulder once, whispering urgently, "Yeah, this is really important."

I can't stop a huge yawn as I throw the pillow and the blanket to the side. My movements slow. Very slow.

Prom sighs impatiently and his hands grasp my own in a sudden move to pull me swiftly up from his bed.

“Ah! What?!” My wide eyes blink a few times, impressed with Prom's strength, not having expected to stand on my own feet so soon and that quickly.

"Hurry!" He whispers one more time, glancing back over his shoulder as if anticipating a sudden attack from an enemy.

"Okay, okay." I try to calm Prom down after another huge yawn almost manages to tear my jaw apart. "I'm up now. I'm getting there." Or so I continue to say, because my feet are still glued to the cold floor and they yearn to hide themselves back into the warmth underneath the soft blanket.

"Noctis!"

I chuckle with half-lidded eyes from sleep. "See? I'm already one step closer to the door."

Or maybe not.

Prom quirks up a brow, not believing a word I say. Well, I wouldn't believe myself either, I'm one step away from falling backwards on his incredibly soft bed, whose cozy presence behind me is so hard to ignore at the moment.

I rise my hands up in an attempt to rub my tired eyes, my lips pouting in defense to the harsh treatment I receive this morning, but Prom's patience is over when he instantly takes a firm hold of my hands to push me towards his living room.

Any smart words of protest die in an instant before they can even reach the surface of my tongue.

And I feel my bare feet screech to a sudden halt when I finally get to understand the true source of Prom's anxiousness.

Yeah, trust me, I'm definitely awake now.

"Good Morning, Noctis. Take a seat, we have a lot to discuss."

Eos no.

Why?!

This isn't fair! This fun weekend turned suddenly sour.

"Good Morning, Father." I hear myself say in a subdued sounding voice. Dreading what is yet to come, the consequences of my sins having arrived too soon for my taste.

My father looks me up and down, his face unreadable yet slightly amused.

Well, I guess he's impressed about my personal teddy bear armor. The wrinkled pajama too big for my petite and lean body, the collar especially too wide, which makes me look as being swallowed up completely by the pink fabric. I appear to be even smaller than I truly am because of it and I grit my teeth in frustration. I want to grow up already! When do I get the famous growth spurt anyway? Ignis and Gladio are already light years away from my height. I swear they both resemble trees, it's not really funny anymore.

Prom wrings his hands again while standing next to me, his wide, fearful eyes meeting mine for a second. When I see him swallow down in obvious horror that THE King of Lucis is gracing his humble home, I send him a soft smile to calm his fears. At least I try my best to look collected and cool from the outside, not letting the growing dread inside of me getting the upper hand.

Sending Sius a suspicious look, I feel betrayed when he avoids my eyes, so I proceed to sit down on the chair opposite to my father with a pout.

The King himself being here can only mean one thing and one thing only.

I'm busted.

I worry my lip with my teeth, scrambling some intelligent excuses in some miraculous hopes that he allows me to stay.

"You didn't introduce me to your new friend yet," he says after some long seconds of silence.

"Huh?" I look up in shock.

He surprised me. I thought he would start to lecture me immediately.

"Your new friend," my father repeats, looking at Prom while asking, "Tell me, what is your name?"

"I-it's Prompto Argentum, sir."

"Prompto, come closer, sit down with us."

I watch how nervous Prom has become, his legs slightly shaking as he pulls out a chair to sit down next to me as instructed.

Underneath the table I place my hand over his trembling ones, trying to soothe his nerves a bit. Making him understand that I'll take all the blame, it's all my fault anyway. Even if it weren't, I would still take all the blame because this would be the right thing to do, I care for him that much already.

And then my father says something that is even more surprising to me.

"Sius, prepare a slight breakfast for us, some hot chocolate would be greatly appreciated."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

After Sius leaves, I open my mouth to apologize first. But my father is rising his hand to stop me.

"Relax, I'm not mad at you Noctis. Sius told me everything. While I understand your motivation for what you did, why didn't you let me know beforehand of your admittedly reckless plans? Did you fear that I would reject your request to befriend Prompto?"

I stare at the table as if the inanimate object could dissipate the sudden tension in the room.

"Yes," I reluctantly admit to him.

My father sighs out gravely, looking thoughtfully at Prom and me for a while.

The tension is growing and I take Prom's sweaty hand properly into mine, interlacing my fingers with his gently. I feel him squeeze my hand in return, which in some mysterious way gives me a lot of strength to oppose whatever decision my father deems worthy for my future.

I snort out a laugh in my mind. This feels as if I'm about to wed Prom and as if I'm looking for his final approval. Such a silly thought, that all of a sudden I can feel my cheeks blush because of it. Where is this ridiculous thought suddenly coming from?

"Noctis, surely you understand by now that you are not allowed outside the palace without sufficient protection. You could have gotten your friend in danger."

I roll my eyes inwardly. Of course I know! I've been lectured about it too many times already. I still remember the incident with Iris, Gladio's sister, well enough.

So I say, sounding stubborn to my ears, "That's why I had Sius with me. I didn't go alone this time, I was prepared."

No matter what my father says, I won't leave Prom.

"I see." Is his puzzling reply, sounding humored.

I narrow my eyes at him. Despite feeling ridiculed I stay stubborn when I add, "Gladio taught me to fight, I can take care of my friend myself now."

"Really? How about you, Prompto? Can you fight? Would you be able to protect my son if a dire situation should arise?"

What's this? An interrogation?

"Y-yes, sir," is Prom's nervous answer.

What?!

With a curious frown I stare at Prom's profile. Despite his trembling hand holding mine, his eyes are courageous as he looks squarely into my father's surprised eyes.

"How?" My father frowns as well. It's clear as a day that he anticipated Prom to say no.

Prom swallows dryly before replying, "I am aware in Lucis it's frowned upon, sir, but I know how to handle guns to protect myself. My father taught me. He... served Solheim's forces in the far past, before he quit his military service to care for my mother. In order to do that, he fled the country for us to be able to live here in peace. On our difficult journey to Insomnia, I had to learn to protect my family, sir."

My father's wide eyes are almost as large as mine. With this statement, Prom managed to take the wind out of my father's sails.

I can only stare and gape openly at Prom.

His family isn't native to Lucis? He was born in Solheim, the Golden Land? Prom's true origin is from beyond Niflheim's borders?

And on top of that, he can wield guns?

Eos, I think I'm about to keel over dead from my surprise...

I won't lie. The sudden excitement at hearing these news makes me almost jump in my seat!

As I continue to stare in impressed wonder at Prom, all kinds of feelings suddenly start to overflow my heart...

**... **

 

* * *

To be continued.

 

 


	6. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noctis faces resistance...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone,
> 
> this chapter is a bit on the short side, but it felt right to end it there. But the next update will follow soon, so you won't need to wait for long to know how the plot evolves ;).  
> Compared to my other stories, all chapters in this one will be kept short, so that I can update more often. :) Please bear with me. Have fun reading!
> 
> A big thank you to everyone who follows this story! Big hugs and kisses for your reviews, kudos and bookmarks! Love them all <33 they are delicious!
> 
> Till next time,
> 
> Kamuel
> 
> P.S.: Sius is the driver we saw in one of the older Versus XIII trailers, where they drive to the signing treaty party, and where he calls for Noctis (Noctis Ouji! Noctis Ouji!) to wake up. I don't know if we will ever see 'Sius' again in the game, so I took this opportunity to flesh out his character into this story :D.

 

* * *

**Chapter Six**

**...**

Sius did bring all of us fresh baked croissants and cups of hot chocolate (my favorite!), but not even those delicious treats are able to distract me from staring in awe at Prom.

It suddenly feels like he revealed to me a much more complex and darker side of himself, which intrigues me to no end. So not only is Prom selfless, well mannered and terribly nice, but he's courageous and strong as well. He learned to fight at such an young age. He protected his family in grave times, survived the relentless war raging outside of Lucis' protective walls and now he's here, living all by himself. Who would have thought? His adorable and clumsy appearance did completely fool me.

The most intriguing part for me is, he himself isn't even aware of how special he is, and how rare it is to find all those qualities in young people such as us nowadays. I must know, because I searched to meet someone like him for a long time.

When I see that he's obviously too shy in front of my father to start to eat his croissant, I slowly push his cup of hot chocolate closer to his hand, encouraging him to have a taste of it at least. I can only imagine how hungry he must be after the ordeals of last night. As if on cue, his stomach starts growling, the pains of hunger making Prom wince and I give the cup another, insistent push towards him.

Prom sends me a small, albeit unsure smile, but then he imitates my movements and takes a few sips out of his cup. His eyes can't help but widen at the rich taste of the creamy and hot liquid in front of him.

I hide my smile behind my own cup. Well, this brand of hot chocolate is my favorite for a good reason.

After a few silent moments, my father resumes the conversation, saying softly, "Prompto, guns in Lucis are only frowned upon when they are used in offensive practices. You and your family had to protect yourselves from Niflheim forces, therefore it's completely understandable given the dire circumstances. Don't worry, you are not in any trouble because of it."

Prom nods at my father in relief, clutching his cup tightly between his hands.

"Now tell me, what do you want to be later in life? Where do you see yourself after you finished school?"

Well, that was a quick change of topic. My head turns in a swift move to look startled at my father, who, interestingly enough, seems to stare quite thoughtfully at Prom.

Here we go, the interrogation continues. I only am not sure if this is a bad or a good thing. Hopefully the latter.

"I... I'm not sure yet, sir," Prom admits, his stance uncomfortable as he looks down, his cheeks blushing in shame.

From the look inside his eyes, my father seems to already have made some kind of important decision, something that I'm not able to decipher from his serious expression. I follow his movements when he shares an unreadable, meaningful look with Sius, who in turn gives a firm nod of his head in confirmation. I am aware that my father trusts Sius with his life, in the same way he trusts uncle Cor, so I rise an eyebrow at the truly curious exchange between the two of them.

I want to know what's going on.

With a frown on my forehead, I just continue to take a bite of the soft croissant and then give a nudge to Prom's hand to start to eat. Whatever my father decided, I'll stay strong in my resolve to not let Prom alone this weekend. Come hell or high water, I'll resist my father's authority if I have to.

When I sneak up a glance at Prom, I almost choke up on my food in shock.

Where did his croissant go? It... it disappeared.

At my quizzical gaze, Prom smiles sheepishly at me, rising the cup of hot chocolate to his lips in a futile attempt to hide himself. The remains of the icing sugar on the corner of his mouth the only evidence that he just devoured the whole thing at once.

I hide my soft laughter behind my hand. He's truly something else...

But my chuckle freezes on my face as soon as my father orders Sius to wait outside in the car for us. A sure sign that we are going to leave soon.

"Noctis," my father addresses me suddenly, "I understand your desire to help your friend. But you know that you can't stay here. It's too much of a risk for both of you."

"What? No! Please, I want to spend my weekend with my friend."

He must know that I rarely go out of my way to ask for selfish things. I rarely behave passionate and forward about something that I want, Eos, I usually refrain from objecting my father's decisions as I usually prefer to go with the flow. Because I learned early enough it becomes less of a hassle for everyone involved if I simply comply.

So I kind of understand the shock and surprise written all over my father's face. He's not used to me behaving in such a stubborn manner. But he will learn that Prom is important to me.

"Be reasonable. Alone the amount of protection you'll need this weekend will shake up the entire neighborhood. People naturally get curious and are going to attract a lot of unwanted attention. It's dangerous," he insists in a strict sounding voice, folding his hands together on the table as his eyes narrow at me.

My heart starts to beat furiously.

No. There has to be a solution.

A further glance at Prom's disappointed and sad expression helps my resolve to remain firm.

"I want to stay."

"My son, this is a wish you must be aware I cannot grant to you. Think of your position. It is your duty to protect your friend from harm. This involves refraining from making your friendship go public beyond the security of your own home."

This time it's Prom who reaches for my hand under the table. Saying in his own way with a slight squeeze to give up, that it is okay to leave him. But he can't hide from me the sadness in his eyes, so I clench my jaw, refusing to get separated from him. I don't know where this strong and strange force comes from. It's compelling me to stay by Prom' side. I never felt like this for anyone before. All the more I don't want to go home without him.

On the spur of the moment, my eyes grow large with inspiration. That's it! This is the solution!

Gulping down my fear of rejection, I look my father squarely into his eyes and say with finality, "If it's not possible for me to stay here, then Prom comes with us."

I think I did manage to catch my father completely off-guard, his silence speaking for itself. This is a novelty. My father experiences for the first time ever how I'm about to invite a friend, a commoner, inside my home.

Isn't this what he intended? Isn't this the reason why he keeps insisting for me to go to a public school? To meet all kinds of people and to make friends?

Well, here I am now. I found one. A very special friend.

Prom pulls at my hand to get my attention and a glance to my side makes me smile inwardly. Only now do I notice how his uncombed hair from sleep defies gravity, he strangely reminds me of those Chocobos depicted in Ignis' photography books. His adorable cheeks are flushed from utter surprise, his wide, blue eyes clearly not believing I just proposed such a preposterous thing.

What can I say that it hasn't already been said? I find myself doing things I never did before, all because of him.

Should I get worried for my mental health? Hell no. I feel elated.

My father clears his throat after a dramatic, sabbatical pause of silence. "Noctis, it's impolite to decide something for yourself without asking the other party if they agree to your idea first."

I slowly look back at my father, my expression reproachful. I give my best to send him the 'You are one to talk.' look. One day I'm hopefully old enough to tell him that out-loud.

So I follow his remark and ask Prom, "Is this okay? Do you want to come with me? It will be fun, I promise."

Prom's hand starts trembling, his wide eyes suddenly fearful. He looks down at our joined hands, suddenly letting go while his head shakes from left to right, obviously refusing my invitation.

I feel my cheerfulness instantly plummet to the ground. "What? Why not?"

"I c-cant," is Prom's only answer.

After everything I fought so hard for, my father finally approved to invite my new friend home, and now Prom says no?

Eos, I want to know his reasons!

But before I can ask another question, my father already stands up from his seat. Hell, I know that my father is in great haste because of his duties. I'm still surprised that he found time to pick me up personally. But I don't want to go without understanding why Prom refuses my invitation. I thought he would look as much forward to this weekend as I did?

My father takes a last look around Prom's living room, saying, "It was a pleasure to meet you, Prompto. Get your belongings, Noctis. I approve of your friendship, but you must understand that now we have to leave. Don't be sad, you two will meet at school on Monday after all."

Sad? I'm more than sad! I'm devastated... I can't stop staring at Prom, my eyes desperately searching his out to get a proper answer.

When Prom avoids to look at me, clutching the end of his seat tightly with his hands, I feel like having been punched in the guts by him. His rejection hurts more than I thought it would do.

Not knowing what to say, I shuffle my bare beet in small steps towards Prom's bedroom to get my clothes and my bag. Like in a trance I undress Prom's pajamas, fold them neatly and place them on his bed. The cute teddy bears printed on the pink colored fabric smile at me brightly. But instead of feeling happy, the pain in my chest makes it hard for me to breathe.

Why?

Did I do or say something wrong? Doesn't Prom feel the same strong connection to each other like I do?

I stare at my clothes as if they would know all the right answers.

Despite my huge disappointment, I know that I should respect his decision. Maybe he still doesn't feel well and needs this weekend to recover...

After I finished dressing into my own clothes, I reach for my bag, but the heavy photo book slips out of it and clatters down on the floor in my haste.

I take a moment to look at a revealed Chocobo picture. What a strange coincidence. I can't stop a fond smile, but then the pain in my chest reminds me of why I feel the pain in the first place and I heave a sad sigh, looking for a pencil to write down my phone number on the page next to the photo.

Drawing a funny stick figure, I write underneath it 'If you need a friend, you know where to find me! Noct"

Proud of my accomplishment, I place the open book next to the pajama on Prom's bed and then I leave to meet my father at the door.

Because I don't want Prom to see how miserable I feel, I don't turn around when I make my farewell.

"See you on Monday, Prom. Take care of yourself," I say, forcing myself to sound cheerful but failing miserably at it.

"Yeah, the same. Have a nice weekend, Noctis," says Prom in a subdued sounding voice. "Thank you for everything..."

My father goes first and I follow his steps outside. But something tells me to stop for a moment before I close the door, and I catch a glimpse of Prom behind me.

He wipes his tears furiously away when he realizes that I watch him.

Prom cries.

My chest hurts again. I don't want to see him sad.

But it was his decision to stay home, and if this is what he truly wants, then who am I to force my own selfish wishes on him?

Indeed, I have gotten to know diferent flavors of pain in my life. But I have to admit, that the stinging torment that I feel right now, just when I close the door with a harsh clicking sound behind me, comes second to the pain that I felt when I realized that my mother had died. That's how strong it is.

I place my hand over my heart.

Why? Why do I feel so strongly for my new friend? Why does his rejection hurt so much? I really don't understand...

Once I get into the car, occupying the seat next to my father with a heavy heart, I can't stop my mind from asking again and again the same questions.

Why?

Why didn't Prom come with me?

**...**

* * *

 

To be continued.


	7. Chapter Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carbuncle, that sneaky, little fox...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey dear readers,
> 
> another update comes your way ;).
> 
> Did some of you play the Platinum Demo? How did you like it?  
> I myself have spent over ten hours with it since it came out, I just can't get enough ;_; lol, it's so much fun! September cannot come soon enough!
> 
> So continuing in this spirit, this chapter is dedicated to our fluffy Carbuncle! Because he's a sneaky, meddling, little, cute unicorn-fox ô_Ô!  
> Have fun reading everyone!  
> Kamuel

 

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

**...**

The car stops in front of our home and I open the door to get outside.

I look up into the sky, blinking the sudden raindrops out of my eyes.

The cold drops soak immediately my hair and shirt up until Sius reaches me to hold out an umbrella protectively over my head. Usually this would make me rush the multiple stairs up into the palace as if the devil himself were after me.

I can't stand the rain. Rain reminds me always of bad things...

So I find this to be such a strange coincidence, that it has to rain just when I feel sad again. Today of all days...

But the sadness that I feel right now is the only thing my heart cares about. My feet respond to that emotion, and they walk up the stairs slowly, following the steps of my father as if they all of a sudden have turned into lead.

"Welcome back, Your Majesty, Your Highness," greet us the attendants once we reach inside.

"I'm going to take a shower," I inform my father without giving anyone the chance to speak first. I want to be left alone. I can feel their stares full of questions and pity, but quite frankly I'm not in the mood to get pampered and questioned by everyone today.

Without waiting for an answer my feet resume their task to get me into my room, I crave the silence and solitude that I can only find in the privacy of my own bedroom. But my steps feel heavy, sluggish, as if they would have a mind of their own, because my mind can't do anything else but stay occupied with confusing, glum images and thoughts of this morning's events.

All that I can think about is Prom's upset face. That short moment, when he quickly wiped away his tears to hide them from me, had burned itself behind my retina.

I feel my own tears well up in my eyes when I finally reach my destination.

As soon as I close the door behind me, locking it up as to not get disturbed by anyone, I suddenly run the last few steps that lead to my bed and I throw myself on it.

Why?

Why am I that devastated over the fact that Prom rejected my invitation?

I feel so helpless, scolding myself with the knowledge that I could have run back to him to hug him, to convince him to come with me, but I didn't know how. Knowing that I could have said something to comfort him before I closed the door, but I didn't know what.

Right now I'm so emotionally invested, that it makes me fear myself. This is a new side of me. I have never met someone like Prom before that makes me wish so foolishly to spend as much time with him as possible.

Eos, that he refused to come with me shouldn't be such a big deal, and yet here I am, acting as if the world just ended.

I'm still a child after all.

I close my eyes tightly, forcing the burn behind my eyelids to stop. I don't want to cry. I'm sure that there is a good reason why Prom decided to stay home. There must be.

But as much as I try to find an answer on my own, I can't come up with anything.

Despite the turmoil inside of me, the seconds and minutes go by, and as tired as I am it doesn't take long for me to drift back to sleep...

**...**

_(Noct's realm of dreams)_

**_..._ **

'Noct! What happened? What are you doing here so soon?'

My fluffy friend from my dreams greets me with a cute squeak and I send a sad smile towards him, shrugging my shoulders helplessly.

'Carbuncle, I'm so glad to see you again,' I greet back, watching how my dear friend runs with quick steps to catch up to me.

Now that I'm older, he and I don't need a communication device any longer. I learned to control my lucid dreams a lot better and our thoughts are tightly interwined as a result. I'm glad for it, because now we are able to exchange words, ideas and symbols freely within our minds without any misunderstandings. It took us five long years to achieve that feat, but it was definitely worth all the trouble.

As soon as Carbuncle reaches me, his small body jumps up into my open arms and I hug him tenderly, nuzzling his white fur with the side of my face.

He then squeaks gently next to my ear, 'You are sad. How can I help you to make you feel better?'

The guardian of my dreams always knows my current moods and feelings. I couldn't hide them from him even if I wanted to.

'Let's just stay like this for awhile...,' I whisper against his fur.

'You know you attract nightmare creatures when you stay upset like this for too long,' Carbuncle warns me fondly.

I just hug him closer to my chest. 'Hn, I know.'

After some time, I can feel his small nose poking my cheek to get my attention and then he squeaks out, 'Prom's realm of dreams sure seems fascinating.'

'Heh, is that so.' My voice is muffled when I continue to snuggle my face on his soft fur. I try not to show him how much I want to know more about it.

'Ah, I knew you would be curious! Just admit it, you can't hide it from me,' he squeaks out, a sly chuckle following.

I feel the urge to smile, despite the stab of pain Prom's name calls forth in me. So I give in to Carbuncle's bait to get me to speak about my troubles.

'You caught me red handed, you know me too well,' I confess. Of course I'm very much interested in what he has to say about my new friend.

So I listen eagerly to my guardian's next words.

'You remember the Iron Giant that prevented you to wake up some years ago? I found out something terrifying. A nightmare creature, of the same alarming scale as the dark giant you once defeated, seems to have nested itself inside Prom's subconscious mind. It wreaks havoc with his self esteem, insomuch poor Prom can't escape his grasp and influence even at the time when he's awake in the real world. While I scouted his dreams yesterday, I tried my best to steer Prom away from that dark place for the time being. He was not ready to face that creature all alone. But maybe, if he joins forces with someone close to him...'

My hands lift Carbuncle immediately up so that our eyes are on the same level. 'You think that I'm able to help? Show me the place, I'm ready.'

He squeaks out a soft laughter. 'Oh Noct. You are a true friend. I knew you care about Prom very strongly,' he teases me, his eyes twinkling with some kind of emotion that I am not able to understand yet.

'That's why yesterday, I took the liberty to weave a gate, to form a link to his realm of dreams, and now there is a connection from his subconscious mind to yours. I can take you right there if you want to do this now, Prom is asleep which will make your journey seamless.'

The strong desire to protect Prom from any harm suddenly dispels all sadness instantly.

'Bring me to him,' I say firmly, nodding at my guardian for him to show me the way.

Carbuncle jumps down to the ground, looking ahead.

'Follow me, you know the drill by now.'

**...**

In the past few years I managed to accumulate a lot of knowledge and strength. I gathered many abilities of how to defend myself inside the realm of my dreams. With Carbuncle by my side I scoured deeper levels of my subconscious mind and I defeated a vast number of nightmares along the way. A feat that did help me a lot in the outside world. I have become less scared of things, I became stronger and a better person because of all those nocturnal journeys. Lucid dreaming is amazing once one gets the hang out of it and it's incredible what I was able to learn about myself in all those past dreams.

A lot of dark creatures learned to fear me by now and this gave way to much scarier and bigger opponents over time. While still dangerous, I'm confident in my abilities to defeat a nightmare of the scale of an Iron Giant without the need to transform into an adult version of myself any longer.

So I'm ready to tackle whatever might come my way. I'll protect Prom with everything I have.

As my father once said to me, 'In your dreams you are the King.'

'We are here,' squeaks Carbuncle in warning, leading the way inside a dark cave.

But then all of a sudden my fluffy guardian slows down.

'Oh no! Prom is here!'

'What?! All by himself?' I squint my eyes into the darkness, trying to catch sight of something as I gaze as far into the distance as I can.

'Noct, the Iron Giant seems to have grown since yesterday, his magic powers feed off Prom's fearful emotions! I can feel it!'

Prom!

Without thinking too much, my feet already resume running, jumping, climbing and warping over various obstacles to reach Prom in time.

Carbuncle calls after me, 'Noct, wait! We don't know how dangerous this nightmare might be, slow down!'

I can hear Prom shouting in fright from afar and I grit my teeth, forcing my body to move faster, praying with all my might to overcome the remaining distance at one go.

Please! Come on, hurry up you stupid legs! This is only a dream! There is no gravity to hold you back!

I need to save my friend!

My body starts to glow and I look down at my hands as wisps of strong magic encase my body. Carbuncle squeaks out loud in surprise when we suddenly find ourselves high up in the air.

In a blink of an eye we both warp beside Prom.

I'm too shocked to react, needing a moment to process what just happened. Usually I need to throw a weapon into the distance to warp myself to it. This time I warped with Carbuncle in tow without any aid of weapon.

I'm truly shocked.

'Noct, this was amazing!' praises Carbuncle and I send a wide smile at him in answer.

'It worked! I can will my body to warp anywhere I want!'

But my joy is cut short, because the huge Iron Giant takes a hold of me and starts to squeeze out the breath out of me.

"Noctis!"

Prom calls my name, his fearful, wide eyes staring at me owlishly, as if not believing that I'm truly here inside his nightmare.

Eos, I'm so happy to see that he's all right, but I forgot how painful it is to be squeezed to death by the Iron Giant's massive hand! This time the dark creature is so much stronger than the version I defeated five years ago!

I'm shouting with pain, struggling to get out of his unforgiving grasp.

"Noctis! No!"

Prom seems to forget his fear, because he's already standing up from the ground to run up to me, his intent to help me written all over his pale looking face.

"Let go of my friend!" he cries out angrily.

He punches and kicks at the Iron Giant's leg several times, sounding desperate, "Let go of him, do you hear me! It's me you want, I'm right here!"

I still struggle to get out, but because I'm in my younger form I can't warp out of the grasp as easily as I once did. The dark magic is too strong, I can't do anything!

Carbuncle squeaks out and jumps up to provide Prom with a weapon to fight.

'Prom! Use your gun to defeat him!' Shouts my guardian at my new friend. 'Don't worry, I'll be right by your side to help you!'

"Carbuncle, you here? Noctis and you really came to save me? All of this is not my imagination?"

Prom stares at us in disbelief before taking his gun swiftly into his hands to shoot at the Iron Giant's head.

"Aim at his heart, Prom! This is his weakness!" I cry out at him in between harsh and painful squeezes on my limbs.

"Understood!"

Prom focuses his aim at the Iron Giant's heart, attacking it with sharp, deadly shots.

The strategy seems to work, because I can feel the fierce hold on my body lessen. Finally I am able to warp down to the ground!

Landing next to Prom, I nod at him, smiling like an idiot because I'm proud of him that he overcame his fear to save me. I knew it that he is brave!

But before Prom can react to me, the Iron Giant lifts up his heavy sword already and prepares a strong attack. In my younger form I'm aware that I'm not strong enough to counter his sword, so in a swift move my arms go around Prom and I warp us away at a safe distance.

Because of the strong impact, we land in a heap of limbs on top of each other.

Prom blinks up at me, his glasses askew. His face seems flustered.

He and I are so close to each other right now that our noses almost touch, and all of a sudden my brain thinks that this is the right moment to inform me of how many different kind of hues and nuances his blue irises are comprised of. In addition to that, a big image appears in my mind, encouraging me to compare his eyes with the beautiful sky on a clear summer day...

I can feel my own cheeks heat up for no reason at all and I quickly take a step back to give us some much needed space.

Where in the world did that embarrassing thought come from?

But before I can question myself any further, Carbuncle joins us, his expression worried. 'Noct, this time around the dark creature is too strong! In this state I fear you are not a match for him. You know what you need to do, don't you?'

Nodding in confirmation, I glance back at Prom. "How good is your imagination?"

"Huh?" Comes his overwhelmed answer.

"Can you imagine yourself as an adult right now? Can you picture your future self in your mind?"

Prom tilts his head slightly to the side. "Noct, what do you mean?"

I smirk in reply. "I mean this."

Closing my eyes and focusing on my future self, my body starts to glow and I can feel my appearance change to that of a 20 year old self. With a mischievous smile aimed at Prom, I intend for my shuriken weapons to appear into my hands, preparing myself for battle.

"Wha... who... h-how?" Prom stutters completely taken aback, looking me up and down with his mouth hanging wide open. The sheer and utter awe painted all over his adorable face makes me laugh softly.

From afar we can hear the Iron Giant getting closer, his growls growing louder.

Carbuncle sqeaks in panic, 'This is the realm of your dreams, Prom! You can do it too! Hurry!'

"Close your eyes," I urge him, aiding him with further explanation, "and then imagine how you would look like when you get older. It doesn't matter what age, you need to be an adult for your abilities to grow stronger. Forget your limitations, here you can do and be anything you want as long as you strongly believe in yourself!"

Prom closes his eyes, brows furrowed as he focuses on his task.

"Join me when you are ready," I say, leaving his side to confront the dark giant.

My dream guardian stays behind to protect Prom and I try not to glance back curiously when I hear him squeak loudly in shock.

The Iron Giant catches up to us and I jump high up to throw my shuriken in vicious strikes at his heart to hold his severe attacks off. I can only hope that his fighting techniques are the same as they were the last time when I confronted his counterpart in my own realm of dreams.

The nightmare creature growls louder, the air around me reverberating his evil intent and he stretches his arms out to gather more dark energy into himself.

Very good, that's the opening I've been looking for! This is my chance!

With swift warps I get close to him and then I attack the area of his heart with the huge Zweihänder. But just when I think that I'm able to do a lot of damage to his armor, the slashes of my sword gets immediately repelled and I'm getting thrown off to the ground with force.

I imagine to hear my bones cracking from the impact, even when I know that this is a dream and my body isn't real.

Eos, this hurts like mad!

When I try to stand up, I can't stop a wince, because my body hurts like it would do in real life, dream or not.

Right then the nightmare giant uses his gravity attack to absorb my essence into his wide bubble of dark energy.

I warp away from the magnetic pull, but a heavy strike of his huge sword close to me crushes me to the ground again before I can even think to warp away any further.

"Noct!"

Prom joins me out of nowhere, placing his hand on my shoulder.

"You alright?" He asks with worry lacing his voice, his arms pulling me up.

"Yeah, splendid!" I joke, but everything else that I wanted to say gets entirely swallowed up by my dry tongue when I look up at Prom's adult self.

He pats my clothes in an attempt to get rid of the dirt which is only an illusion anyway, his face focused on the Iron Giant next to us. "How can we defeat him? Do you have a strategy?"

I try to utter something intelligent, but I find myself not able to speak, my eyes firmly glued on him.

Gone are his chubby cheeks and plump looking body. For the first time I see how truly handsome Prom is. Of course I found him handsome and adorable before, but now...

I shake my head. Hell, this is not the time to gape at my friend!

Compared to me, the Iron Giant doesn't slack off, his huge sword suddenly coming down on us with a swift blow.

So I turn around with a growl, willing my huge shield to appear on my left arm, just in time to parry the forceful attack!

What happens next is too much for me to comprehend, because in a spur of valor, Prom joins my counter attack with a series of impactful shots at the giant's massive chest! Right then the enemy is forced down to his knees and we use this opportunity to attack simultaneously! I activate the Armiger, the mysterious Phantom Swords cycling around me as they spear one after another the giant's heart, destroying his armor to make room for me to use the shuriken to strike effectively at his weak point while Prom fires his deadly arsenal mercilessly in a final, finishing blow!

"Guuuarrrrggggghhhhhh!"

The evil giant gargles his defeat, and Prom and I watch breathlessly how the black essence gets absorbed by the liquid ground underneath his heavy body.

Prom stares at me and I stare back.

After the nightmare's epic fall into nothingness, we fall down on our tired asses, panting, looking at each other and starting to laugh in joined euphoria.

'Noct, Prom! You did it!' comes Carbuncle excited squeak from behind. He jumps up on Prom's chest and then he swishes his fluffy tail against Prom's nose in his joy.

With this Prom sneezes and suddenly turns himself back to his younger self.

Carbuncle jumps down, praising us, 'You two should have seen yourself, each one of you were so incredible! So strong!'

Just then I feel myself transform back as well, and I send a fond smile at Prom while holding my fist up.

Prom adjusts his glasses, a playful grin on his lips. Reading the intent behind my gesture, he raises his fist to meet mine in a victory bump.

"Not bad for your first slay," I tease him.

He ducks his head shyly, his adorable cheeks red as he acknowledges the hidden compliment.

"So, what do you say? You ready to come for a visit to my place? I won't bite, I promise," I tease him again, being hopeful that this time he won't reject my offer.

Prom's head turns to me swiftly, staring wide eyed at me.

I tilt my head in confusion. "What's that look for?"

"I... I thought you were mad at me. You... ehm, you really want me to come to your place? Are you sure you won't get in any trouble because of me?"

Ah, so he declined my offer because of self esteem issues for which his nightmares were responsible for.

He looks down on himself and I have to smile at his sudden, horrified gasp while his hands hurry to pull his shirt down to cover his belly from my sight.

Nightmares or not, some things never change. He's truly adorable.

"Prom," I say softly, "you are welcome to visit my home anytime you want. You are my friend now. A good friend."

He meets my eyes from underneath his lashes, nodding slightly, nervously plucking off something invisible from his short jeans while he bites on his lip to hide his happy smile.

Eos... I can't properly express how relieved I am to see him smile again.

"Then... expect me at your place in about an hour," he says shyly.

A nod is the only thing I'm able to give back to confirm, speechless from the sheer joy that Prom changed his mind.

"I'll send Sius to pick you up."

Carbuncle, who watched our interaction in silence until now, suddenly quips up, "Don't forget to bring your homework."

"Eeeeeeeeeeh?!" Prom stares aghast at our fluffy friend. "I forgot! My weekend is now completely ruined!"

I snort out a laugh. "Nah, don't worry." I reach out to ruffle his hair. "I'll help you with your homework. You can copy some of mine and then we have enough free time left to have fun."

Prom's eyes start to water, his hands reaching for mine, whining playfully, "Noctisssss, you're sooo niiice! Marry me?"

We all start to laugh in good humor.

Truly, I'm so glad to have met him.

I'm grateful that we can spend the weekend together after all.

I really can't wait.

**...**

To be continued.


	8. Chapter Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noctis' best intentions get rewarded with his worst nightmares...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone,
> 
> it's time for the next chapter :)! There is not much to say to this, I'm just taking things slowly one step at a time ;).
> 
> Have fun reading everyone! Thanks so much for your reviews and follows!
> 
> Kamuel

* * *

 

**Chapter Eight**

**...**

I'm so nervous and excited that even my feet just can't keep still.

Prom will arrive at any moment now and I can't stop myself from pacing back and forth impatiently.

I stand in front of the stairs of the citadel, my mind already busy; which places would be interesting to show to Prom? What kind of games should we play at first? Honestly, this is the first time in ages where I look forward to something so strongly.

The attendants behind me stare curiously into the distance. They can't hide from me their obvious interest about the mysterious friend that I have invited to stay over for the duration of the entire weekend. My father approved, and because of that I can certainly understand their curious stares. Something like this never happened before after all. Aside from Ignis' and Gladio's friendship, for the most part I grew up all alone in this lonely place...

Just at that moment we hear the car driving around the corner. I'm not aware of holding my own breath as the driver, finally, stops the black car in front of us. I feel my heart jumping up and down in my chest as I watch how Sius gets out the car to open the door for Prom.

From the outside, I might appear to be as cool as a cucumber, not letting anyone know how restless I truly feel inside. But I don't exactly have the luxury of time right now to start analyzing the source of my unusual excitement.

There he is, my new friend!

"Noct!" Prom greets me with a wide smile as soon as he gets out of the car.

I wave my hand at him with a tender smile of my own. The adventure we experienced in our dreams still fresh in my mind. But just when I make the first step toward him to give him a hug, Prom beats me to it and embraces me fiercly.

My eyes almost pop out of my skull in surprise, because we both underestimated his strength as we stumble backwards, and as a result we fall down on the red carpet followed by surprised cries and a heavy thud.

"Your Highness!"

Sius and the attendants immediately rush to help us up, but I raise my hand to stop them. With a breathless chuckle I glance up at Prom's blushing face. "You okay?"

He just nods, smiling sheepishly, "Ehm, I'm sorry. Did you get hurt?"

"Nah, I'm good." Well, that's a lie, my elbow hurts. But he doesn't need to know that, I wouldn't want him to feel bad about it.

We help each other up and then I pull on his hand to follow me. "Let's get your things up to my room first," I say full of excitement when the reality strikes me again that Prom is truly here.

Prom stares speechlessly at our joined hands, so I cough once to get his attention. He then snaps out of his dreamy state to look wide-eyed at me, as if making sure that holding the Prince of Lucis' hand before everyone's eyes is really okay.

I just squeeze his hand gently. "Follow me," I say conspiratorially with a wink.

As soon as we reach the final pair of stairs, which lead to the entrance of the palace, Prom suddenly lets go of my hand to take a few tired breaths.

"W-wait Noct, you're too fast. I need a moment," he wheezes, sounding breathless while bending down to place his hands on his knees.

I'm confused, so I take a look behind Prom to count the stairs and then my eyes drift back to him again. Huh, are those stairs really that strenuous to walk up? I mean, I myself walk them up and down since forever, maybe I've just gotten used to them? I guess?

Prom has his eyes squeezed shut, breathing heavily, making a hand gesture for me to wait a little bit more.

I bite on my lower lip to keep myself from laughing out loud, because I wouldn't want him to misunderstand or to offend him. Eos help me, I find him so adorable right now that I just need to tease him. Only a little bit.

So I try to hide an amused smile when I say casually, "Do you see those windows up there? The ones which are high up on the 50th floor? There's my room, and for us to get there we'll need to take the stairs, so..."

"Eeeeeeh?" Prom's rosy cheeks seem to have lost all blood inside when he stares high up to the windows where my hand points toward to. Holding his sides with one hand, he moans in defeat, "No waaay...! I... uh...," he swallows dryly.

His expression, as he wipes away the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, is so comical to watch, that my pokerface crumbles and I snort out a chuckle. I place my hand on his shoulder in a reassuring gesture as I say, "Prom, relax. Of course there's an elevator for that."

"Noct!" Prom sends me a reprimanding look, relief and humour written all over his pale face as he playfully pushes me backwards. "How can you do this to me? I almost believed you!"

Now I can't stop the laughter from bubbling forth anymore, avoiding his grasp like a sleek cat. "You should have seen your face, so funny!" I chuckle, jumping aside to dodge his continuous attempts to catch me.

"Noct, you're so mean, wait until I get you!"

But instead of avoiding his grasp, I just courageously take his hand into mine to continue to guide him up to my rooms.

He stumbles after me, staring now wide-eyed at the building in awe, the top of his ears red.

Yep, I'm happy that Prom is here.

**...**

"So, what's your favorite colour?"

"Black."

"Huh? Black is not a color," Prom sends me a grin as I sit down next to him at my study desk.

"Yes, of course it is," I say with a raised brow, opening his first book for us to start doing his homework. "My clothes are black, therefore I wear the color black."

"No, it isn't," Prom insists. He places his pencils in front of us before looking back at me. "I read once that black is the absence of colour, it swallows all light. In contrast, white is a color because it consists of the entire spectrum of colours."

"Heh, shouldn't this be in reverse? Why did I hear that black is a color, but white isn't?" I ask with a frown.

"Well, I guess it depends on your point of view. Ask a scientist and he would say that black isn't a color, but white is. Ask an artist instead, and he would say to you that white isn't a color, but black is. My best guess is that artists usually have to blend all colours together, like red, green and blue to get black as a result."

I stare astonished at Prom. "Huh, I didn't know that. I learned something new today thanks to you." He surprises me yet again and again, so I ruffle his hair gratefully. "Well then, I decide to think like an artist and say that I like the colour black. But if you, as a fellow scientist, think that this isn't a colour, then let's just say that red is my favorite one," I say cheekily, smiling.

"Really? Mine too, I like red." Prom smiles happily, pointing at his red t-shirt before trying to fix his messy hair with his hands.

While Prom is occupied with fixing his hair, I turn to stare at the huge pile of papers lying on the table, not knowing where to begin. Damn, Ignis should arrive any moment, why isn't he here yet? He promised to help us out.

After a long pause of silence, Prom suddenly takes out his camera. I glance curiously at him. Apparently he doesn't want to do his homework yet, but rather have fun. 

"Recently I took some interesting pictures. Would you like to see?"

"Yeah, sure," I slide with my chair closer to him, our shoulders touching as I glance down at the small screen of his camera. Prom must have taken a shower before, because he smells incredibly good...

Just then I shake my head, silently scolding myself. Why am I noticing all these things about him? First I'm mezmerized by his eyes, then by his adult form, and now this... what in the world am I doing?

"See this one," Prom points at the glowing screen with a fond smile, "the black cat you see here, I picked her up when she was sick, and then shortly after, I found a new home for her. The family who took her had to move on the other side of the city. It's too far away for me now to visit her, so I'm not able to see the cat anymore. But I'm happy to have all those pictures of her at least..."

"She's so cute. Why didn't you keep her? You seem so fond of her," I ask when I see that he misses the cat dearly.

"Because...," he swallows once, caressing the screen of his camera tenderly with his thumb before whispering, "my mother would have done something cruel to her to hurt me, I'm sure of it. So... to find a nice family for the cat was for the best."

For some reason, I can't do anything else but stare at Prom's sad smile. _Something_ about him right now makes me catch my breath, _something_ about him makes me want to hug him again, and despite the mood that grew somewhat saddened between us, my heart won't stop fluttering in my chest with _something_. As I continue to watch his upset profile, his gentle looking eyes never leaving the sleeping cat on the picture, that bittersweet _feeling_ inside of me grows and grows and no matter how much I try to give it an identity, I can't come up with any appropriate words for it.

"I'm sure the cat is doing well," I say suddenly to lift up the mood and to distract myself from this _something_ in my chest that has begun to grow unbearable. "I think you have talent, I myself would have never thought of taking this picture from that perspective. Ah... but wait a moment, what's this? May I take a closer look?"

Prom nods his consent for me to take a hold of his obviously very precious camera, and then I raise it up to the level of my eyes to squint at the picture's resolution.

"Don't you think the image is a bit blurry? Hm, did you check your settings before using your camera?" I turn the device around to inspect the various options.

He bends his head closer to me to glance at what I'm doing, asking confused, "Yeah, err, I think so? Why?"

Fantastic! Now the time has come for me to impress him with my incredible repertoire on professional photography knowledge. All those sleepless nights where I diligently spent studying Ignis' photo books finally pay off!

But, of course, it's just my luck that right at that moment Ignis has to knock on the door and decides to grace us with his presence.

I know I shouldn't, but right now I can't help but to regret informing my best friend and tutor on my phone of Prom's huge amount of homework. Ignis is always very strict with my own homework, so I should know that he won't let us have any fun until lunch time. So I resign myself to delay imparting my hard-earned 'Photographer' language to Prom much later in the evening.

With a quick glance at my clock I prepare myself for very, very long and dry hours full of relentless work.

"Come in," I call out, sneaking quickly some of Prom's papers in front of us, to look like we already started to work on them diligently.

Prom stares curiously at Ignis, placing his camera away into his bag.

"Prom, this is Ignis, a good childhood friend of mine. He's going to help us today to get your homework done," I reassure Prom when I see that he grows nervous at Ignis' presence in my room. Well, I should have informed Prom of my plans beforehand, but somehow it completely slipped my busy mind.

"Nice to meet you," says Ignis, holding his hand out to Prom.

"Oh, nice to meet you too, Ignis. I'm Prompto."

I watch how they shake hands and then I make room for Ignis to sit down next to my new friend.

"Prompto, Noct told me that you have a lot of school work to do, so as he said, I'm here to help you out. Usually I don't do something like this, it isn't a part of my usual duties. That's why, I hope you two get the message that this won't happen again," Ignis finishes his strict speech, already reaching out for a pencil to start.

I fear to glance at Prom, not knowing if he will be offended that I called Ignis for help. I promised to be the one to help in the first place, but Ignis is so much faster and a whole lot smarter than me that I just want to get Prom's homework out of the way as fast as possible, so that we can use our freetime to play. My eyes, those traitors, shift all on their own toward Prom's face, preparing myself for the worst, but then I find myself blink a few times at his elated and awed looking expression.

He bows in front of Ignis a few times, "Thank you SO, so much, Ignis. If you like, we can start with math, I'm really not good at it and I look forward to you teaching me. Please take care of me!" Prom bows one more time to thank him profusely.

Ignis' looks as if he lost his ability to speak, his posture tense with astonishment.

I can certainly understand his reaction. Not even once did it occur to me to thank Ignis like this in the past, somehow I always took his duties as a turor for granted. Maybe I should take this as a lesson and do the same now.

"Yeah, thanks Ignis, I owe you," I say humbly, placing my hand on his arm in thanks.

Ignis seems to hide his smile, rolling his eyes at us. "You two can thank me later, for this will take some time to finish. So let's start. The sooner we get things done, the sooner you two are free to do whatever you want this weekend."

Yeah, Ignis is right.

More freetime to spend with Prom is what I want, and by guessing the meaning of Prom's bright smile, I'm not the only one to look forward to afternoon that much.

**...**

"Let's do a break. It's almost noon," says Ignis, placing the finished math homework aside while looking at the clock.

Oh thank Eos, finally lunchtime.

I stretch my back, placing my pencil away with a yawn.

"Thank you very much, Ignis. Without your help I would have never understood those difficult calculations. Not even my teacher could explain the formula as well as you did," says Prom with awe as he stows away his finished math homework back into his bag.

"You're welcome," says Ignis, taken aback again by Prom' unexpected politeness. "What subjects do you need my help with after lunch?"

"Uhm, let's see...," answers Prom, searching inside his bag for his books.

I can't thank Ignis enough for his help, later I have to ask my father if I'm allowed to buy Ignis a present or two.

"By the way Prompto, Noctis informed me of your wish to change your diet and that you need my help to arrange a proper time table for your exercise."

Prom bag slips out of his arms down on his lap as he blinks owlishly a few times. He looks like he completely forgot that.

"Uhm, yeah, that's right, I'd like to reduce my weight," he answers warily, as if afraid that Ignis might judge him for his current weight.

Ignis' face brightens suddenly up and I raise my brow at this, a bad feeling overcoming me all of a sudden...

"Very well, let's work on your diet schedule immediately after lunch. I'd like to mention that I've taken the liberty to inform the cooks to prepare healthy meals for the duration of this weekend." Ignis ends his speech, glancing at me with a dangerous glint in his eyes.

"Oh, sounds good. Thank you for this, your forethought is greatly appreciated," Prom gives Ignis once more his heartful thanks.

I wish I had listened to Ignis' exact words, instead of beaming at Prom the whole time. I would have saved myself a viscious headache if I had been prepared for what Ignis had in store for me...

**...**

"Please, take a seat," I encourage Prom to sit down next to me at the table located inside the dining room.

"Thank you."

While waiting for the attendants to bring us our meals, I stare at the other end of the table, only to feel crestfallen that my father didn't make it to have lunch with us.

"Pssst, Noct," whispers Prom, calling for my attention.

"Hm, what is it?"

"Why doesn't Ignis sit with us?"

"Good question. My father told me once, that only royality and guests are allowed to sit together to take their meals... I'm not sure," I say, furrowing my brows.

He stares at me wide-eyed. "Huh, don't you think that's a bit strange? Ignis is your friend, too. He should take his meals with you all the time he's here."

I find his innocence to be quite endearing. It's strange how Prom makes me notice things that I personally would have never questioned.

But then the attendants come in and bring us lunch, finally, because I'm starving. The hot chocolate and croissant from this morning having been long since digested into nothingness.

My body grows all stiff when they place the various plates full of food on the table before us.

One short glance at Ignis, who politely awaits further back in the room, confirms to me that my pop eyes are not deceiving me, nor that this might be a simple coincidence only. Those smiling eyes of his are almost diabolical with intent and I inhale a sharp breath of horror.

The attendants wish us to enjoy our meals and then leave Prom and I alone again.

Oh dear Goddess, no. No!

Not like this!

"Noct, is everything okay?" Sweet Prom places his hand on my arm to shake me out of my rigid and alarmed posture.

I clutch at my chair in utter revulsion.

No! No, I'm _not_ okay!

I swallow down a huge lump that feels like a cotton ball, my throat hurts already just from the sheer _evil_ sight that greets me.

Prom waves his hand in front of my eyes, whispering, "Noct, say something, you scare me."

There are _mountains_ of food full of vegetables on the table and staring me defiantly in the face!

Greens! Everywhere my horror-stricken eyes can reach!

The only thought that I'm capable to think of, in my current state of mind that reminds me slightly of anneurysm, is, what have I done in my previous life to deserve this horrific punishment?

**...**

To be continued.


	9. Chapter Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noct's worst fears come true.  
> And Prom decides something very important, something that will make Noctis' and his friendship grow much stronger and allow it to become more intimate in the near future...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey dear readers,
> 
> how have you all been? :)
> 
> Next chapter up!
> 
> I just watched the movie Kingsglaive! I don't quite understand all the negativity surrounding it, I LOVED the movie! Sure, it has its own problems, but I enjoyed it none the less!
> 
> I'm just sad that Ravus apparently isn't the same character as I had imagined him to be. Maybe the game will change that, but as for now, I don't like Ravus' personality inside the movie. I'm really disappointed ;_;. I thought he would be a much smarter villain and well, more classy, I guess.
> 
> Anyways, enjoy this chapter :D and please don't forget to let me know what you think!
> 
> Thank you for reading,
> 
> Kamuel

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

**...**

I can only gulp down at the dreadful sight before me.

Feeling Ignis' eyes on me, I know he's watching my reactions intently like a hawk. I'm aware of his wish for me to eat more vegetables, I know he means well and that he cares about my health a lot, probably more than I myself do, but... I wish he hadn't chosen this weekend of all days to do this.

Now that I think of it, he's a true genius. It's incredible that Ignis goes even that far, to take advantage of Prom's condition to make me eat those _evil_ meals. He obviously intuited that I can't and won't say no in front of my new friend.

He must have noticed how fond I've grown of Prom in such a short period of time...

Anyways, back to the matter at hand. Those nasty vegetables be cursed... if I had the same powers as my father does, I would immediately banish all greens out of this place. Alas, it seems I can't avoid them today, not with Prom sitting next to me. If I were to refuse those meals, I know that Prom won't eat either.

Every single dish in front of us has been made, in one way or another, from the green stuff I absolutely abhor. I can already feel my taste buds protest against them vehemently. If anyone were to ask me, if I could remember the very first impulse of my never ending distaste for vegetables, my dry answer to them would be simple, 'since birth'. Clearly my genes are not at fault here, because compared to me, my mother loved veggies very much...

"Noct, what's wrong?" Prom waves his hand in front of my face again in hopes to finally get my attention, his voice laden with apprehension.

Well, it's obvious that I can't sit here completely horror-stricken the entire time and not expect Prom to get worried about me.

After what seems like an eternity, I manage to croak out, "Sorry, I-I'm okay. I'm just surprised, that's all." I swallow dryly a few times before glancing back at Prom, to focus on his wide, blue eyes as he tries to understand my visible anxiousness, something that I can't hide from him no matter how much I try.

"Go ahead, let's enjoy our meals," I encourage Prom with an inviting gesture of my hand to be the first one to start, signaling to him to eat to his heart's content.

Prom sends me a sheepish, thankful smile. "Thanks for having me, Noct," he says before staring at all the food in front of him in awe, "whoa, would you look at that! Everything looks and smells so delicious, what should I do? I don't know where to start..."

I chuckle at his overwhelmed expression, teasing him as I continue to watch him fondly, "Don't hold back for my sake, eat everything you like, it's more than enough for the two of us on the table."

Thankfully Prom doesn't hesitate to tackle the food this time. He decides to get a taste of the spring rolls first, which admittedly look really good from the outside. But... it's the inside of those _evil_ things that have me wrinkle my nose in distaste as soon as Prom holds out a spring roll for me to bite into.

"Hmh, those are amazing! Noct, come on, try one," he urges excitedly, not noticing my hesitation. His ridiculously eager looking eyes are giving me the impression that he just ate the most delicious food in the entire universe.

Well, I guess I should brace myself up for the challenge, but... there are carrots inside, and I truly _can't stand_ carrots. They are an abomination. I'm completely convinced that carrots are not meant to be eaten by humans, why else are those nasty things being fed to bunnies and guinea pigs all the time? Those animals worship the ground those carrots walk on. Right? Makes no sense.

But when Prom's expression changes from expectant to confused and then to disappointment, because I still don't move nor say anything but stare at the spring roll in front of my face as if it could violently attack me at any moment, I have no choice but to take a bite of it to make Prom happy.

Honestly, I don't want to be the reason to make Prom sad yet again. Even without speaking frankly about it, he made me understand yesterday that he never had a true friend before, and so I invited him inside my home for us to have fun. I promised to myself that the precious time I'm allowed to spend with him from now on will be solely dedicated to his own happiness. I genuinely want to make him smile all the time.

So, if making Prom happy means that I'll have to make a pact with the devil himself, then by all means, so be it. With a weary sigh, I suddenly find myself caving straight into hell.

"...and, good?" inquires Prom, sounding unsure because of the somewhat sour look on my face.

"Hn, yeah, good," I confirm with a swift nod of my head, the smile on my face appearing crooked rather than charming, my left eyelid twitching uncontrollably as I proceed to chew the slimy thing in my mouth metaphorically to death, pushing with my tongue the chewed up food from one side of my inner cheek to the other, because my throat absolutely refuses to swallow down.

Yet, against my expectations... the spring roll doesn't taste as bad as I had it stored in my memory. But honest to Eos, it doesn't taste that good either, not as good like Prom just made me believe it does. The filling's flavor reminds me strangely of smelly socks, and I bet my underpants on the fact that it would taste much better if it weren't for those obnoxious carrots inside (and only the Goddess knows what else), which makes it taste as if the roll had previously crawled into a sewerage to die, only for it to change its mind all of a sudden, rolling its mushy carcass straight into my mouth instead to rot comfortably inside.

Ugh, the things Prom makes me do already, I hope my sacrifice today will not be in vain.

Taking a deep breath, I give my all to swallow down and I force myself to finish the entire spring roll at one go. The whole time I try not to show visibly on my face how big the urge is to spit the slimy mess out. To get rid of the horrible aftertaste in my mouth, I reach for a glass of water to neutralize the abomination's lingering slime on my tongue.

At first I thought that's it. I thought my obligation is hereby done.

Foolish me. Think again, Noct.

Because sweet Prom, Eos may bless him, places now plenty of veggie-pasta on my plate and pours some UHS (unidentified herbal sauce) all over it. To add even more insult into the injury, he graciously places a few spoonful of mixed salad next to it.

"Now Noct, you absolutely _have to_ taste this. I never knew that healthy food could be this delicious! I promise to never ever eat those burger and chips ever again," he gushes over the food in front of him excitedly.

Goddess have mercy...

My breath hitches once, not aware that I hold my breath now as I continue to stare in disbelief at my full plate. If I wouldn't know it better, I would be suspicious of Prom that Ignis might have persuaded him to dump all those abominations on my plate on purpose. Now I find myself not able to refuse. Not when Prom smiles at me like this.

So I reply with a wry grin, cursing my inevitable fate inwardly, "Y-yeah, looks really good."

Hell... right now I sorely wish that I could catch some of his excitement. I start to feel annoyed at myself and sad that I can't join the fun.

After Prom looks away, focusing back on his own full plate, I poke with my fork halfheartedly around the mixed salad while trying my best not to give the carrots dwelling midst the greens the evil eye. Wouldn't want Prom to get scared because of my mean looking face.

I stab an innocent looking cherry tomato with my fork and bring it up to my mouth in slow motion, proceeding to chew it slowly, very slowly, procrastinating the unavoidable for as long as possible. At least the salat dressing tastes not bad, a high praise coming from me indeed. Right now, I can't help myself but inwardly demand, from the bottom of my heart, for those offensive monstrosities to mysteriously vanish from my plate, eyeing with utter animosity those bitter rucola leaves in front of me.

Greens. Vegetables. How can anyone freely eat and enjoy the taste of them? For me it's incomprehensible. Those people must be either tough or completely insane.

Not to mention the veggie-noodles. They are even multi-colored. I don't have to be a genius cook to understand that the red colored ones are made from carrots, and that the origin of the green colored ones might be spinach. Such a huge surprise, one abomination after another.

Imagine my joy... right now it just grows and prospers.

Yeah, now I can be certain that this was all Ignis' planning and doing. He's the only one who knows exactly which kind of veggies and greens I always avoid to eat after all.

I take a few sips from the water next to me first, preparing myself mentally and emotionally as I rotate with unenthusiastic movements of my hand some of the white noodles around my fork. I'm painfully aware that I'm just fooling around with my food right now and not eating properly as I should. All the while my stomach makes hungry noises. I'm really hungry, but I want to eat proper food, not _this_.

Glancing sideways to Prom, I envy him so much at this moment, the veggies obviously not hampering his healthy appetite. His plate is almost emptied by now while mine is still full. Maybe if I eat all the white noodles first, there might be a slight chance that Prom will ignore the leftovers on my plate... hopefully?

By the way, do dogs by any chance eat veggies? Dogs are animals, right? Animals love carrots as far as I am aware of, so there shouldn't be a problem with my logic. Because damn, I wish Pryna or Umbra were here, at least then I would be able to sneak some of my food under the table. I really have to try this the next time Luna's puppies are here...

Speaking of sneaking, I swiftly sneak another glance over at Ignis, who now watches me closely with a frown on his face, and then I sneak a peek back at a chewing, content looking Prom, who just raises his hand to lick off some sauce from his fingers, and when his eyes meet my own, his bright smile almost blinding me, I just know that I'm doomed. There is no way out of this. I have no other option but to resign to myself, knowing, that lunch today will be the death of me.

That is the last thought I have before I dive my fork down straight into the bottomless pit.

**...**

"Finally! I thought this would take forever," Prom groans out, sounding relieved as he places his books away, looking happy because we just managed to finish the huge amount of homework.

It's gotten late already, too late for us to start playing something worthwhile and I stare in absolute resignation at the clock. Almost a whole day has gone by without Prom and I doing something fun. Well, fighting the nightmare off inside his lucid dream this morning doesn't really count.

Even dinner has been a dull experience for us, because there were yet again _healthy_ meals served to us and this time I behaved like an idiot, refusing the entire time to eat anything that even resembled greens in any way. Because of lunch, my stomach had still been in pain.

Prom grew sad that I refused to eat the meals, he was probably blaming himself for my behavior. So I can't wait for us to be alone. I need to talk to him that this wasn't his fault at all.

I tune into Ignis' and Prom's conversation, yawning heartily as I shuffle Prom's homework over to his side.

"...and remember Prompto, cut down on the sweets and you'll be just fine. Be patient, losing weight isn't happening suddenly over night, give your body time to adjust to your new diet. Follow the steps I wrote down each and every day and this will help you to stay healthy along the way."

"Ignis, you're so amazing. I can't thank you enough for your help today," Prom beams happily at my childhood friend, bowing once more to show his heartfelt gratitude.

At this moment I somehow feel blessed to be his friend. He's so genuine and honest with his feelings that I have to admit, I seriously could learn a thing or two from him.

"Right. Then this will be my cue to leave," Ignis says uncomfortably, adjusting his glasses back on his nose.

I have to hide a smile when I see Ignis sending me a meaningful glance. My childhood friend seems to be struck speechless because Prom is so different than he probably imagined him to be.

As Prom makes room for Ignis to leave, both stand up at the same time from their chairs and it's too late for me to react in any way, helplessly watching those two as they knock their heads in the haste of their movements to get up.

"Oh my gosh, Ignis, I'm so sorry," apologizes a stricken looking Prom as he holds his own forehead from pain.

Ignis rubs over his head, wincing, "No, it's all right. I apologize, this was my fault, I stood up to quickly."

"I'm such a klutz, I should have realized you wanted to get up first," adds Prom with a devastated expression on his adorable face.

"Don't worry about it. Are you okay?"

"Err, yeah, and you?"

I don't know why, but those two are amusing to watch as they continue to send each other apologies. I am glad that Ignis has accepted Prom to be my close friend.

A huge yawn escapes me yet again when Ignis turns to me with a soft look inside his eyes, "Noct, if you two decide to play games this evening, don't forget to turn off all the consoles after you're done playing. It's dangerous to leave the devices on over night."

"Huh, why?" I ask confused.

Ignis huffs, "Surely you didn't forget how Umbra came into your game room unannounced and how he chewed up all the cables lying around. He could have gotten himself hurt. Last time you fell asleep in the middle of your game."

"What?! You must remember it wrong, I did no such thing," I deny vehemently, feeling my cheeks heat up because Prom has to witness and listen to what would be one of my weaknesses.

Prom dares to chuckle, and when I try to stare him down, he chuckles even more.

But instead of feeling annoyed with him, _something_ in my gut tickles and makes me smile at him in response.

"Well, I don't think that we will play any games today. It's not only too late for that, but Prom and I are really tired," I say to Ignis, sounding regretful, aware of the fact that Prom and I didn't get enough sleep the night before.

"Is that so?" Ignis watches us with a raised brow. "Well then, I bid both of you a good night. Don't hesitate to call for me if you need my assistance. The guest room has been already prepared."

"Hn, thanks. Night, Ignis."

"Thanks again for everything, sleep well, Ignis," says Prom with a happy grin, waving his hand until Ignis disappears from our sight as the door clicks shut behind him.

**...**

"So, about the guest room Ignis mentioned...," Prom shuffles his bare feet on the floor, already dressed in his pajama and ready to go to sleep.

Having remembered that I hadn't taken a shower since yesterday morning, I took a quick one just now, not wanting to let Prom wait for too long for me. As I dry my damp hair with a fluffy towel, I can't help but notice how skittish he has become all of a sudden.

Furrowing my brows at his strange behavior, I just shrug my shoulders once, not understanding why he turns away when I get closer to him. But his red ears stick out in between his blonde strands of hair and I blink a few times at that.

"You can stay here, if you want," I say casually, not noticing how my words affect Prom and intensify his skittishness around me.

Placing the towel on one of my chairs, I enjoy the warmth underneath my own bare feet, thanking Eos profusely for the luxury of having a floor heating system installed inside my bedroom. I quickly take my own pajamas out of my wardrobe and walk towards my bed as I dress the comfy pants on.

When Prom still doesn't say anything, nor doesn't turn around to face me, I crawl beneath the blanket and make room for him to join me.

"My bed is big enough for the two of us," I say with a yawn, stretching my arms and legs as I make myself comfortable on the left side of my bed. "Besides, the guest room is too far away from here," I add, hinting to him that I don't want to be separated from his presence. I intend to keep Prom close to me for reasons that I still can't comprehend fully myself yet. I just know that as long as we are together, I don't want to sleep alone anymore...

Prom finally joins me, the mattress bouncing when his heavy body lies down next to me.

"Is this really okay...?" He asks breathlessly, sounding nervous to my ears.

Blinking into the darkness just as I switch the light off, I answer with a frown, "Yeah, of course."

"I mean, I-I don't want to get you in any trouble," he stutters, suddenly shifting his body away, as if wanting to stand up and leave.

My hand shoots out instantly for his upper arm to hold him back. "What are you talking about? You are my friend. I promise nobody will get mad at you for sleeping here. Stay and forget about the guest room."

I can't see his expression in the darkness very well, but I can feel his rigid body reluctantly lying down again as he turns carefully on his right side.

I turn around under the blanket to face him, smiling slightly, happy beyond words that he decided to stay. His presence next to me feels comforting and I don't want to miss this feeling ever again. It's strange how the night before has forged such a strong connection to him.

There is an awkward silence between us now and I decide that I don't like it.

"What's wrong?" I finally ask after awhile, noticing Prom's skittishness returning.

His feet can't keep still as he continues to shuffle them under the blanket. "N-nothing. It's just... I don't think that I can fall asleep yet," he whispers, his voice sounding strange.

Oh! Of course, he's probably still disappointed and mad that I behaved so foolishly at dinner before.

Searching for appropriate words to apologize, I say softly, "Sorry about dinner. I didn't want to make you worry. You must know that I can't stand vegetables. I know the food is healthy, Ignis tries all the time to make me eat greens and stuff, but it just tastes all wrong for me... it's something I seemingly have no control over."

"I see...," is his quiet answer. "Why didn't you tell me? Because of me, you had to suffer at lunch..."

"Don't you dare start to blame yourself, I didn't wish to hamper your appetite. After you were so ill yesterday, I wanted you to enjoy the food instead of worrying about me being such a spoiled brat," I say jokingly and place my hand in an affectionate gesture on his shoulder.

He hisses slightly as if in pain, trembling slightly under my touch when I pat and caress his arm like I did the night before to calm his fears down. "I'm really sorry," I say one more time, letting go of his arm when I can clearly feel how uncomfortable he has become.

"I-it's okay. I understand now, thank you for telling me," he whispers.

I wasn't aware of holding my breath, dread creeping up my spine at the thought of him refusing to be my friend now because I wasn't honest with him from the start. But his slight smile that my eyes can catch in the darkness before he pulls up the blanket to hide his face from me, makes me breathe out in relief.

"Good night, Prom," I whisper, my jaw cracking slightly as I yawn.

"Good night, Noct..."

From his rigid posture I can still feel that there is something bothering him, but I'll wait until he's ready to talk to me about it.

**...**

I curse inwardly when my full bladder wakes me up in the middle of the night.

Prom and I met again in a lucid dream and we've just chased down some low level nightmares inside his subconscious mind. Just seconds before I woke up, both of us had a lot of fun, jumping high into the night sky, enjoying the thrill of flying next to each other in our shared dream. Not to get lost, I held his hand into mine as he laughed out loud at a joke that I made.

Ugh, I want to go back to sleep right now.

But instead, I have to stand up begrudgingly, making haste to reach the loo in time.

When I get back to my bed, silently crawling beneath the warm blanket next to Prom, his sudden, soft voice startles me.

"I can't go back to sleep."

"Sorry for waking you up, but nature called...," I say sheepishly, rubbing my tired eyes.

Prom chuckles and I hit the side of his feet with mine to make him stop. "Quit laughing. That's the downside of lucid dreaming. Once awake, it's not easy to go back into it, especially when one is not used to it."

He turns his head to look at me, sounding excited when he asks me, "Lucid dreaming is so much fun, can you teach me how to do it every night?"

I shift my body towards him, feeling excited myself at the possibility of experiencing thrilling adventures with Prom each night. Something that I always felt uncomfortable asking Ignis or Gladio, because sharing a lucid dream feels immensely intimate. But the prospect of sharing them with Prom feels strangely natural to me.

"If I were to be your guide, you have to know before hand that I'm going to witness the deepest parts of your mind. You have to be sure...," I say awkwardly, only now becoming aware that he'll learn everything about me once I allow us to visit each others subconscious minds.

I have nothing to hide, but... well, having Prom inside my mind is something very intimate and yet... it feels right to do this.

"I want to learn, I trust you," he says firmly, reaching for my hand to squeeze it slightly.

"It's not always fun," I warn him. "You may learn things about yourself you might not be ready to face, not to mention the amount of fears you'll have to overcome. You saw how terrifying that Iron Giant was, needless to say, there are much more horrifying nightmares lurking inside your mind. It will take years to master this skill, if not a lifetime."

"Noct, you'll probably scoff at this, but when we are together I'm not afraid of anything. I feel free in a way I have never felt before. Please teach me, I feel compelled to share my dreams with you and I can't explain why," Prom whispers. "Having just experienced what lucid dreaming feels like, I now know that it's possible for us to be friends at all times. Not only during the day, but during our dreams as well..."

I'm somewhat struck speechless, because he feels the same as I do.

My heart starts racing, my hand held inside of his own starts sweating.

"Okay," I whisper delighted, knowing that our conversation tonight will change our future irrevocably, in a very good way. "Let's start right now with your lessons. The sooner you get a grasp on how to become aware inside your dreams, the sooner we'll get to have fun."

I roll my body out of bed, taking the blanket with me, laughing softly at Prom's squeak of surprise when I leave him uncovered.

"What are you doing?"

"Psst, follow me and stay silent," I say quietly, motioning with my hand for him to follow me as I walk towards the door.

I hear Prom's feet getting closer and I open the door as silently as possible. Glancing back over my shoulder, I whisper to him, "There are guards stationed at night everywhere. We'll need to be careful."

Prom places his hand on my back. "Wait, where are we going? Wouldn't you get in trouble if anyone were to see us? I have a bad feeling, let's go back to bed."

Taking his hand into mine, I counter, "Didn't you want me to teach you? You'll need to overcome your fears. This is no different than experiencing a similar situation inside a dream, think of this as a lesson."

I can hear Prom gulp down. "Right. This is a lesson. What are we waiting for, let's go," he says bravely.

I smirk into the darkness of my room. I like his courage.

As we make our way up to the top floor of the palace, my heart beats with excitement, the blood rushes in my veins, and as I hold Prom's warm hand, feeling him interlacing his fingers with mine, I imagine that an amazing adventure has just begun...

**...**

* * *

To be continued.


	10. Chapter Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prom gets his very first lucid dreaming lesson, while later, Noct has to face something painful...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone,
> 
> aaand update! :)
> 
> Not much to say about this one, enjoy the ride!
> 
> Many hugs and kisses to everyone for the kind reviews and kudos! Hot chocolate and fresh baked, fluffy croissants for all of you!
> 
> Kamuel

 

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

**...**

"Noct, where exactly are we go-"

"Shhh, don't move," I whisper, placing my hand quickly over Prom's lips to silence him when I hear a guard getting closer.

Hiding in the shadows, I push Prom behind a statue, squeezing myself next to him while holding my breath in hopes not to be found out.

The guard walks by, stopping once to look back over his shoulder, the helmet on his head gleaming in the darkness as it's moving from left to right, and then, thank Eos, he resumes his path and disappears behind the corner.

I glance at Prom, grinning playfully as I let go of him and I place my forefinger in front of my lips in a gesture for him to stay silent. He nods quickly, not moving an inch while staring anxiously in the direction where the guard just disappeared.

Is the guard gone? I prick up my ears, but when they meet only silence, I decide to take another route just in case. Taking a hold of Prom's hand again, we tiptoe along the walls toward the elevator, but our feet make a screeching halt when we are greeted by the sight of two guards standing already in front of it.

This is new. Why are guards stationed at the elevator tonight? This never happened before, strange...

Glancing to my friend, I have to stifle my urge to snicker at his funny expression. A look down to his belly confirms to me that he sucks in his stomach to stay in the shadows. Eos, he's as hilarious as he's endearing at the same time.

Squeezing his hand once to get his attention, I give him a signal to walk back. Careful to always stay in the shadows, we make our way to the stairwell. As soon as the door closes behind us, finally giving us some privacy where we can talk, I say sheepishly, "Sorry, but we'll need to go up the stairs. Is this okay?"

"It depends on how many floors we have to go up." Prom stares wide eyed at the stairs leading up into the darkness.

"Fifteen," I admit to him, scratching the tip of my nose. When I see him hesitating, I add quickly, "There is this place that I wanted to show you. But we can only visit this place at night..."

Blinking a few times, Prom heaves out a dramatic sigh. "Okay, lead the way. Be warned that I'm not as fast as you," he jokes, poking his belly with his finger once to emphasize the meaning of his words.

We grin at each other as we make our way up. On each floor we decide to take a small break so that Prom can gather his breath.

"Do you do this often? Sneaking out at night to visit this special place of yours I mean," inquires Prom, sounding intrigued as he raises his glasses to wipe some drops of sweat away from his brow. "Quite improper for a prince, no?"

Looking back at him, I snort amused, "Well, even a prince needs sometimes a time out. It's the only time and place where I'm able to have some peaceful moments all by myself. Besides, the view alone is more than worth the risk, you'll get to see it in a minute and then you'll understand what I mean."

"Huh, can't wait to see this place then," says Prom, an excited smile gracing his lips before he takes a deep breath in mental preparation for the next pair of stairs.

"Let's go, else the sun is going to rise before I even get the chance to show this place to you," I tease him and push his shoulders playfully forward, both of us resuming our adventurous journey.

Once we reach the top floor, I take out my key chain, hidden underneath the collar of my pajama top, and I unlock the door which leads us to the roof outside. "We are here," I motion to Prom for him to go first, and despite trying not to, I feel myself starting to grow nervous inside.

This is the first time where I invite an outsider to my favorite spot in the whole palace. Gladio and Ignis being the only two other people aside myself to know that this place exists.

"Noct, the view is amazing!" Prom swoons over the breathtaking sight, taking some tentative steps forward as if not believing his eyes, looking around with an eager expression as his mouth hangs wide open.

"I know," is my simple answer, my feet following Prom slowly and my eyes continue to take in with growing fondness all of his excited reactions to this beautiful place.

The roof looks luxurious, thanks to Gladio and Ignis who altered this place to make it a comfy meeting place. On the left side there are some chairs placed around a table, and to the right there is my favorite corner, where many, huge cushy pillows lie on the ground to allow us to chill out and to observe the beautiful sea of stars above. The active Crystal of Lucis behind us, as it fuels and connects the protective wall around Insomnia to the palace, encases the entire roof in a soft, dim, magical glow of light.

"This is incredible, look at all the night lights! I've never seen something as beautiful as this..." A slight breeze ruffles Prom's hair as he turns around to smile at me brightly.

At that moment my heart skips a beat for seemingly no reason at all. Raking my fingers through my hair, I suddenly feel shy to meet his eyes, so I walk up to his side and point up as I suggest to him, "Go on, look up, it's even more amazing."

Prom follows my suggestion and it doesn't take long until a surprised gasp escapes him. "Gosh, the stars are so beautiful! Look, there are so many, I never really noticed before..."

My eyes drift back to his face, silently admiring the enthusiasm of my adorable friend as he gazes up into the night sky. He leans his arms on the safety railing with a wide smile on his face, his eyes shifting around as if not knowing where to look first.

I just don't understand why lately my heart keeps skipping a beat whenever I look at Prom. Something strange is going on with me, it's like I start to feel sick in my stomach, only for it to feel good instead of bad.

"Come, let's sit down," I say, ignoring the confusing feelings dwelling in the pit of my stomach for now and I pull on Prom's shirt from behind to shake him out of his reverie.

"I wish I had my camera with me," says Prom suddenly, his voice sounding regretful.

Waiting for him to make himself comfortable on the cushions and pillows first, I say softly, "You can take your camera with you the next time you come for a visit."

"Really? Can I?"

His eyes glow in childlike joy and my hand ruffles his soft hair spontaneously, feeling the need to reassure him that he'll always be welcome here. "Yeah, we'll sneak up here anytime you want. You know what? I'll ask my father to allow you to stay over as often as it's possible. Most weekends I have private lessons to take, but on others I'm free to do what I want. What do you say? Would you like to come for a visit on those weekends and spend the nights with me like we do today?" I probably should be glad that I'm clueless enough to not realize how my question sounds like right now...

Prom nods his head eagerly, gnawing on his lower lip as he looks down to his fiddling hands, failing to hide his happy smile from me.

Another rush of confusing, but pleasant emotions curl and swirl inside my belly and I look away in a futile attempt to make them go away. I can't seem to focus whenever I feel like this and I don't want to make a fool out of myself by stuttering or by doing some similar foolish antics.

"It feels as if I could just reach my hand out to touch the stars...," Prom sighs out in wonder, holding his hand up as if trying to reach out for the glowing lights in the night sky.

I have to chuckle at his awed expression, which makes him appear even younger than he is, and then I lie down next to him, covering both of us with my favorite fluffy, warm blanket, the one that Ignis gave me as a birthday present a few years ago.

For a long while both of us just watch the shimmering stars in silence, each one of us lost in thoughts, feeling content in each others presence for some long minutes.

Well, I guess this is a good time as any to begin Prom's lessons.

"So, how many guards did we see on our way up here?" I ask suddenly.

Prom sends me a confused glance. "Huh? Err, let's see... five?"

"Correct, and," I pause to think, before continuing, "how many statues did we pass? I know it was dark and all, but they were unmissable."

"Uhm, I think there were seven? No, wait, there were eight," Prom answers correctly again.

"Not bad, and how many stairs did you have to climb up here?"

I admit, this is a difficult one. I only know the answer because I've been climbing those stairs a few times before in the past, when the elevator was still in maintenance.

"Hah, you've got me there. I admit I don't know, I was occupied not to stumble back down the stairs," is his cheeky answer to which I have to snort out a laugh. He nudges me with his elbow. "Now tell me, why do you need to know all of this?"

Placing my arms behind my head while staring up at the sky, I clarify my intent in a soft voice, "Prom, I did ask these questions, because I wanted to test your abilities. To successfully induce a lucid dream you're going to need to become aware of your surroundings first. The more aware you are in the real world, the better. You need to start to question everything, memorize as much as you can. You'll need to sharpen your mind."

"Heh, I see. So this is not necessarily about counting things only, but for my awareness to grow, so that I keep my eyes wide open at all times," he concludes correctly all by himself, shifting his body to the side to have a better look at me.

Turning my head to meet his blue eyes which gaze into mine quite seriously, I jest to lighten the mood again, "You can work on your awareness anywhere and anytime you want, you can even do it in the bathroom while doing heroic things like saving my royal butt from being cornered by my personal fanclub at school. Thanks for your help by the way."

He laughs softly while punching my arm playfully. "Don't mention it."

Answering his smile with one of my own, I continue to explain to him, "It's important to write all your observations down, this helped me a lot in the beginning. With this you can send messages to your subconscious mind that increasing your awareness is a priority to you. You'll be surprised, it's almost scandalous how much information eludes the forefront of our minds daily."

"Yeah, I get what you mean. It's like our brains got lazy, right? We usually are used to focus on one thing at a time and simply ignore everything else we deem unimportant. So those exercises are actually very useful," Prom remarks, looking thoughtful at a point somewhere behind me.

I can only stare at my endearing friend right now, feeling elated inside that he's able to understand the real purpose of the exercises so fast. My fascination with him only grows and grows the more I get to learn about his personality...

Clearing my throat, I add, "The next step you can do, is to remember every detail of your dreams. I suggest to have a notebook ready right next to your bed, so that in case you wake up at night for whatever reason, you are able to quickly write all the details down before they all fade away. Keep this up for a few weeks and you'll see that this gets easier with time, and that you'll remember more and more as you continue to write the content of your dreams diligently down in your book."

"Well, that sounds easy," he says, the expression on his face relieved.

I smirk at him in challenge, "Sure, it sounds easy, but in reality it's hard to keep up with the routine. Sleep has a strong allure to your mind and you'll need to learn to fight it. No matter how sleepy you are, you absolutely have to write down everything you remember before allowing yourself to go back to sleep. The hardest part is to keep this up every night."

Prom's eyes flash with mirth as he accepts my challenge. "Heh, I think this will be fun. I'm confident that I can do this."

"I take your word for it. Let's give you a month's time, and then I'm going to test your abilities again."

"For real? So, let's say I exceed your expectations, do I get a reward?"

I chuckle at his smart response. "I see already that bargaining is one of your strengths."

He has the audacity to smirk at me.

I make a show of rolling my eyes in defeat. "All right. If you show remarkable progress, you'll get a special reward."

Prom turns on his back with a loud cheer and I rush to place my hand again over his lips to keep him silent. "Not so loud," I whisper, "else the guards can hear us."

He nods his head, looking sheepishly into my eyes.

Being so close to him, I feel my heart skip once again and I remove my hand as if having been burned, trying not to think about the fact that my palm is still tingling from the feel of his skin. I take my previous position, pulling the warm blanket up to my nose in an attempt to hide the heat radiating from my face and proceed to watch the stars in bashful silence.

I don't know how much time has passed, but then Prom's soft voice reaches my ears, making me aware of the present once more. "Noct, may I ask you a question?"

"Of course," is my slightly sleepy reply, only now noticing how my heavy eyelids have closed all on their own. I can't help it, the soothing sounds of Prom's breaths and the calming effect of his presence beside me, his warmth that reaches my side, the slight breeze of fresh air that caresses my face, the whole atmosphere of sharing my favorite place with my new, adorable friend... all of this makes me feel so happy, so content inside, that if I would allow myself, I just could fall asleep right here in an instant.

The only thing holding me back is the knowledge, that in the morning all hell might get loose in the case the attendants were to notice my absence.

I feel Prom shifting under the blanket before he turns his head to look at me. "May I ask what happened to your mother...?"

Opening my eyes in surprise, I feel the tiredness in my bones vanish in an instant and my shoulders grow rigid as Prom's question manages to wake up every dark corner of my sleepy mind. To gauge his true intentions, I also turn my head to meet his curious, but sad looking eyes.

"Y-you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. It's just...," he sighs once, avoiding my eyes, "I just wonder what she is like?" Prom blushes slightly, taking his glasses down from his nose to clean them with the fabric of his shirt. "I'm sure that she is beautiful and very kind, I would love to meet her..."

My eyes widen in response to his soft spoken words and at the real implication of his compliments.

When I still don't react, he says further, "I only recently moved to Insomnia, and then I heard my classmates talk about your family. But they never mentioned your mother. Are your parents... divorced?"

Prom looks back into my eyes, his bright blue irises appearing much bigger, now that they don't hide behind his glasses, his demeanor shy, innocent and patient as he waits for me to reply.

I relax my shoulders, breathing out the air I hadn't noticed holding.

To think of my mother brings many sad memories. Truthfully, I don't want to speak about her today, but I feel that I have to be honest with Prom in return. He opened up to me, a mere stranger, yesterday. He shared with me his lonely and painful living circumstances.

I think I understand now why he's curious about my mother...

I realize what Prom is really after, his real question hidden behind his modest behavior.

But I'm afraid to say the truth. I fear to tell him of what happened to my mother, because I can now clearly read inside his hopeful looking eyes his raw need for motherly affection and love.

At this moment I truly wish my mother were still alive, not only for my sake but for his as well. She was a wonderful mother, graceful, generous and loving and pure. I truly wish, that she could meet Prom right now, and I wish, that she would be able to embrace my adorable, lonely friend. I wish she were here, because I know that she would have accepted and loved Prom dearly, in the same way she would have loved Ignis and Gladio as well.

It's been a long time since my own painful memories about my mother made me feel the familiar sting of tears welling up in my eyes that I can feel right now.

"Noct, w-what...? Gosh, I'm so sorry for asking, you don't have to tell me-" he stutters, his adorable face growing pale when he sees a tear sliding down on my cheek.

I roll over and simply hug him, trying to simulate my mother's loving embrace as I hide my face in the crook of his neck and pull him closer to me.

Prom's trembling arms hold me gently in return and a sudden sadness overwhelms me when I decide to overcome my fear, to finally tell him, in a voice sounding strangled by the need to cry properly, "My mother is not here... she's in Heaven. She died six years ago..."

When I hear Prom gasp out loud, and when I feel his arms tighten around my body, I allow myself to cry silently against his neck, feeling genuinely miserable and utterly lost at the realization that none of us will ever get the chance to grow up with a caring and loving mother by our side...

**...**

* * *

 

To be continued.


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noct has to face some old, painful memories...

* * *

 

**Chapter Eleven**

**...**

"I-I'm so sorry for your loss...," says Prom, his trembling voice sounding agitated.

I lift my head to take a look into his wide opened eyes.

He looks absolutely stricken while apologizing again, "I'm so sorry-"

"It's all right, Prom, you didn't do or say anything wrong," I interrupt my endearing friend to stop him from starting to blame himself again, "Thank you for caring about my mother's whereabouts."

"But I-," he tries to apologize again, his face pale.

Cradling him tighter against me with my arms, I say softly to calm his mind, "I'm actually glad you asked. You know, sometimes it feels like everybody treads on eggshells around me, because I haven't heard anyone talk about my mother in a very long time. Even my father avoids mentioning her in my presence, probably because he thinks it would hurt me less... Each passing day when I think of my mom, I miss her so very much."

"Noct...," Prom whispers my name in understanding, hesitating a little before caressing my back gently in the same way as I did to comfort him yesterday.

"It's me who should feel sorry, that you won't be able to meet her. It's because of your own circumstances at home that I understand now how much you've been looking forward to that," I whisper brokenly next to his ear, clinging to Prom's frame and not letting go of him even after my tears have long since dried up.

"How did it happen...?" He whispers the question that I dreaded to hear.

That my mother isn't here anymore, is because of me... but how to say the words out loud?

How can I tell Prom, that everything has been my fault?

I don't want him to abandon me after he hears the truth. I don't want to lose him as a friend...

Prom nuzzles the side of his face against mine, squeezing me slightly. His warmth and emotional support right now feels like balm for my battered soul and I get desperate to prolong the inevitable for as long as possible.

Taking a minute to try to keep myself together, fearful to not fall apart in Prom's arms from the painful memories, I squeeze him as if holding onto his frame would lessen the anguish that I feel inside.

"I...," I begin, licking over my dry lips once to calm myself, "I still remember that day as if it were only yesterday. My mother and I went to a trip to watch the sunset together. Because Niflheim's forces began to expand their horrible wars near the borders of Lucis, therefore getting closer to Insomnia, my father prohibited all citizens to leave the city. But my naive self managed to persuade my mother to make an exception for me. It was my childish desire to experience a proper sunset with my mom by my side, which made her forget the dangers lurking beyond the protective wall built around our home. Her unconditional love for me clouded her judgment on that fateful day."

I make a pause to swallow painfully down, the back of my throat hurting from the attempt to hold back my tears while I scold myself for the umpteenth time for my own stupidity. I shouldn't have listened to my selfish wishes back then, I shouldn't have persuaded my mom to give in to those foolish, most childish desires of mine.

"As it were, it just happened that Niflheim's army patrolled around the same area on that evening, right where my mother took me to watch the beautiful sunset together..., and then, a Daemon found us."

Prom inhales a sharp breath, gasping, "Oh no..."

Before I continue, I squeeze my eyes shut in agony. The images of blood spraying in front of my eyes, her screams, how she was pleading with the Daemon to spare the life of her only child, today still as horrifying as they were in my childhood.

"My mother died on that day, protecting me...," I choke out, biting on my lip to stifle a sob.

Everything had been my fault. Everything. She would still be alive today if I hadn't been stubborn and wouldn't have insisted for us to leave the protective wall to pursue my sudden, self-indulgent whim.

Tears burn insistently behind my closed eyelids, and no matter how much I try to hold them back, they flow mercilessly down my cheeks, their trails almost scorching.

Hell, I'm tired of crying. I'm tired of mourning.

I'm worn out of investing myself emotionally into the same, never ending and excruciating memory all over again.

Eos... what is it about Prom that makes me remember, say and do things I'd usually keep all to myself? Not even Ignis, whom, alongside my father, I consider to be the closest person to me, has ever gotten a glimpse of this emotional side of me before.

I let go of Prom to rub the stinging tears out of my eyes, cleaning my damp cheeks with the back of my hand, but I let out a small yelp in surprise, because Prom pulls me back to him all of a sudden, his embrace fierce, almost crushing me in the process as he continues to hold me firmly.

"Prom...?"

I feel his cheek cuddling against my shirt, as if he tries to hide himself into the fabric of my pajama.

"...ank you for telling me," comes his muffled response, some slight sniffles audible despite him trying to keep it secret from me.

My astonished expression turns to an affectionate one, and I place the side of my face comfortably on his shoulder with a tired sigh.

The longer Prom continues to hold me tightly, showing me in his own, endearing way how much I mean to him, the more I feel my resolve grow inside of me, as I gaze far into the distance being surrounded by Prom's genuine sincerity and warmth, to protect him from any harm to the best of my abilities.

I just have this insistent feeling in my gut, that our friendship might turn into something special, into something that might even last a lifetime and beyond...

Little did I know at that time, that my adorable friend was having the same thoughts about me...

**...**

"I knew I would find you two here."

Somebody shakes me awake with gentle movements and I push the source of evil disturbance with an annoyed whine away.

I can hear an amused snort from somewhere above me, and then the person pulls all of a sudden the fluffy blanket completely away, letting me suffer the chill as it seeps straight through the thin fabric of my clothes without an ounce of mercy. Grumbling sleepily, I desperately seek for a source of warmth, so I turn by body to the side in a fetus position and snuggle up to the body next to me.

I feel Prom turning around, making room for me to hug him.

Aah, this is bliss... a content sigh escapes me while I throw my arm sluggishly over his belly to snuggle up even closer to his soft, warm and comfy side. But just when I'm about to drift back to sleep, the evil disturbance dares to shake my shoulder once again.

"Noct, it's high time for both of you to get back to your room, the attendants will make their rounds in a few minutes," says Ignis softly, sounding urgent.

Oh damn... I don't want to. I want to lay here and keep on sleeping like the dead. It wouldn't hurt anyone to let me sleep late for once. It's a Sunday, for Eos' sake. Honestly, I can't remember ever having slept better than I did tonight. I certainly could get used to this...

Prom sits up and my body follows his movements with half-opened eyes, but instead of becoming awake, I lean on him drowsily, my chin slowly touching my chest as my tired eyes drift shut again. In the privacy of my mind I proceed to pray silently for a miracle to happen.

Ignis' heavy sigh tells me everything that I need to know, but he still speaks out his mind, informing Prom of another weakness of mine, "As you can see, it's always the same drama with him in the morning. Usually it takes me about half an hour to get Noct to get up."

"That's not true," I deny his words instantly, adding sleepily with a hearty yawn following, "I need only twenty five minutes."

"Right, because those five minutes will make such a huge difference right now," Ignis huffs dryly.

Prom laughs softly when he sees the childish pout on my lips and then he stands up to pull me up as well.

"Will Noct get into any trouble?"

"Not when you two hurry to reach his room in time," answers Ignis. "I'll go ahead and make sure that nobody gets to see you two."

"Let's hurry," says Prom, holding the door open for me.

Yawning widely, I just shake my head, stumbling after my friends with half-opened, sleepy eyes.

**...**

"Noct, what is the meaning of this?"

The sudden voice behind us forces all of us to stand still.

"Your Majesty, good morning," says Ignis, greeting my father formally with a bow.

I think, I'm about to get in trouble. Oh joy.

To think that we had almost reached my room in time. Of course it had to be my father to take a walk along these halls this morning.

"Good morning Ignis, Prompto. Did something happen?"

Prom and I look at each other with dread painted on our faces. What excuse could we possibly come up with? Both of us still clothed in our pajamas and only a few meters away from the stairwell.

Ignis clears his throat, answering quickly, "Noct and Prompto were exercising, Your Majesty. I took the liberty to escort Noct and his friend to discuss the best locations for such an endeavor. They followed my suggestion to run the stairwell up and down a few times to warm themselves up."

My eyes grow large at the brilliant excuse, hiding my smile behind my hand as I fake a yawn.

"Is that so?" My father raises an eye brow.

"I still don't understand why I had to wake up that early in the morning, though. This is torture," I grumble in my usual bored sounding voice, careful not to make my father any more suspicious.

"I see," says my father suddenly with a content smile, "without Gladio here, you have been temporarily charged to supervise my son's regular exercise and training schedule. Thank you, as always, for your hard work, Ignis."

"But of course."

My father glances between Prom and myself a few times before addressing my childhood friend once more, "Before I forget, Ignis, I have one additional task for you."

"Yes, Your Majesty," bows Ignis again, awaiting further instructions.

"As of today, Prompto shall join my son's training schedule. Seeing that they have become such good friends, I want to make sure, that Prompto is able to protect not only my son, but himself as well in the future. See to it that Prompto catches up to my son's lessons as soon as possible," orders my father with a serious expression on his face.

Ignis shares a quick glance with Prom and me and then he turns his head quickly back to reply, "I understand."

"Very well."

My eyes follow my father until he disappears inside the elevator. I have to admit to be struck speechless by his decision to let Prom join my training. I mean, I should be grateful that he accepted Prom that quickly, but I'm still suspicious of my father's true motivations...

"Eos in Heaven, I thought that this would be the last day of my life," whines a pale looking Prom, leaning heavily on the wall behind him for support as he stares at Ignis in disbelief.

"Thank the Goddess that this went so well. That was a near miss," says Ignis, seeming much calmer than I thought he would be as he adjusts his glasses to stay properly on his nose. "We now have no choice but to begin with Prompto's training right away. There is a lot that he has to catch up with until he's ready to join your advanced lessons."

I blink my eyes a few times. "You mean, right now?"

"Right now," confirms Ignis, immediately turning into his instructor mode. "Get to your room, I'll send an attendant to bring Prompto a sweat suit for him to change into. We shall meet in fifteen minutes in the training hall."

My heart starts to race with excitement, the sleepiness vanishing instantly at the prospect of possibly being able to watch Prom's special gun abilities.

Prom's face looks, if possible, even paler when he watches Ignis leaving us. "Noct, I am not dreaming, am I? Did your father really say what I think he did?!" He asks as I take his hand to follow me.

"He did," I smirk at him over my shoulder.

"Noct, I think I'm about to get sick...," wails an adorable Prom all of a sudden, and I chuckle at his funny expression when he adds, "I don't think I'm mentally prepared for this. No, forget it, I'm not even physically prepared for any of this. What if I disappoint everyone?"

"What are you saying?" I stop to ruffle his soft hair. "You have Ignis and me to help you, so you have nothing to fear. Your lessons will start easy, don't worry."

Prom looks at me with a raised brow. "Easy, you say..." His eyes look me up and down.

But before I can ask him what that strange look of his is for, my personal attendant already arrived, bringing Prom's new clothes.

**...**

After we both changed into our sporty attire, I show Prom the way to the training hall.

"I'm nervous...," whispers Prom next to my ear as we enter the place where Ignis greets us with a drinking bottle in each one of his hands.

"Drink first. To keep your bodies from dehydrating," he clarifies, a dangerous glint in his serious eyes.

Prom is the first to drink a few gulps of water, crouching down to place the bottle in a safe corner, but as soon as he gets up again, Ignis already aims his training sword straight at him.

"What the...!" Prom gasps and rolls out of the way before the wooden hilt of the sword can touch him.

Wow, what did I just watch? Since when is Prom capable to dodge Ignis' fast sword attacks? Not even I am able to do that yet without my warping abilities.

"Hn, interesting, you seem to have some good reflexes. Definitely something that we can work with," says Ignis in a tone, that sounds intrigued.

Prom narrows his eyes suspiciously, when Ignis points with the tip of his sword towards the wall behind him.

"See all these weapons hanging on the wall? Choose one. I want to test your knowledge. The King already informed me yesterday of your previous deeds, that you know how to fight."

Prom's eyes become fearful in an instant. "I can't."

Ignis frowns, asking, "Why?"

"Because I'm prohibited to use the weapon of my choice," is Prom's simple reply, the weapon of his choice being a gun now unmissable from the serious tone of his voice.

Ignis gapes at my adorable friend, the clatter of his training sword reverberating inside the hall as it slips out of his fingers from shock.

I grin to myself like a Cheshire cat at Ignis' astonished expression. From the look on my childhood friend's face, I can already guess that my father forgot to mention to Ignis this tiny, unimportant detail.

Yeah, I can see that those are going to be some very interesting training hours, indeed.

**...**

* * *

 

To be continued.


End file.
